Elmer Gantry Chapter 18

In which the ambitious and well-dressed Reverend Elmer Gantry, fatigued by his precarious ventures in New Thought prosperity lectures, encounters Bishop Wesley R. Toomis, whose worldly yet devout character and inviting home embody a compelling contrast to Elmer’s restless aspirations. Their cordial discussions open the prospect of Elmer’s entry into the Methodist Church, promising a new kind of religious vocation that balances piety with pragmatic opportunity, while Elmer wrestles with the humble beginnings such a path entails.