The Desire of Ages

by Walter Rea

Order Walter Rea's book: "The White Lie"

If Patriarchs and Prophets was the cornerstone of Adventist theology The Desire of Ages was the keystone in the arch of Adventist thinking and Christological views. In the preface of volume two (1877) of its forerunner, The Spirit of Prophecy, it was said:

In this second volume the author continues with renewed interest the subject of the mission of Christ, as manifested by his Miracles and Teachings. The reader will find that this book furnishes invaluable aid in studying the lessons of Christ set forth in the Gospels. The author, as a religious writer and speaker, has labored for the public during more than twenty Years. Being aided in the study of the Scriptures, and her work as a religious teacher, by the special enlightenment of the Spirit of God, she is peculiarly qualified to present the facts of the Life and Ministry of Christ, in connection with the divine plan of human redemption, and to practically apply the lessons of Jesus to the simple duties of life [italics added].

A lot of trouble and embarrassment would have been avoided in years to come if a few others than the "Spirit of God" had gotten some credit. Although the Scriptures do make it plain that every good and perfect gift comes from God, some of Ellen's gifts of writing were found to have come through quite a few human sources. In the late 1970s Robert W. Olson, for the White Estate (which is always pushed to keep its readers and the church members up to date on such things), issued a rather late concession that Ellen had indeed been peeking at the work of other authors when she wrote The Desire of Ages:

Ellen White's indebtedness to other authors has long been acknowledged by Seventh-day Adventists....

Ellen White can hardly be called a "copyist" since she almost invariably rewrites, rephrases, and improves on the original author when she does use another's material....

"Previous to her work of writing on the Life of Christ and during the time of her writing to some extent, she read from the works of Hanna, Fleetwood, Farrar, and Geikie. I never knew of her reading Edersheim. She occasionally referred to Andrews."-W. C. White to L. E. Froom, January

Olson's article, which may be one of the most revealing concessions to date by the White Estate, deserves detailed study. Had it been circulated, or even leaked, to the general public and the church at large (which it hasn't as I write), this book might not have been written. Often only the "insider" gleaning so­called "top secret" information knows where to send for what-if he is privileged to know that such information exists at all.

To write or say that "Ellen White's indebtedness to other authors has long been acknowledged by Seventh­day Adventists" is only an extension of the white lie. Although it is technically true that, as far back as the 1880s, the church has been righting a rear guard action concerning the use of others' material in the name of God and Ellen, the declarations have always been made with defensiveness and quick justification.

William S. Peterson's article in a Spectrum issue of 1971, for example, was to bring down upon him a chorus of spiritual invectives that, in the language of the truck driver or stevedore, would curl the paint on any container at thirty paces. That Ellen had borrowed just was not so, it was said From that autumn issue until the 1980s the journal has carried continuing charges and counter charges, denials and counter denials that try to refute any suggestion that she would have incorporated anyone's vocabulary or been influenced in any of her writing. 3

Not until Neal C. Wilson, president of the General Conference, wrote the eighteen members of the special Glendale Committee set up to review the amount of certain findings about Ellen's "borrowing" were the readers of the Adventist Review to learn that she had used the works of others for "descriptive, biographical, historical, spiritual, and scientific information." 4 As one member of the committee was to point out to Wilson, "That hardly seems to leave much except direct revelation. Is that the issue the panel is to decide?" 5 Surely the personnel of the White Estate must have known all along that most of the church has been uniformed about the amount and extent of her "borrowing."

At least a great many church scholars who have tried to pry loose White Estate historical material that would help in making comparisons with others' writings know they have received very little help and encouragement from those guarding the sacrosanct vault of the Estate. The policy of "selective revelation" (that is, the Estate selects what may be revealed) has had such a hold that only when members of the Clan pass from the scene may the church expect access to information that may reveal the truth. Time and again the men from that office, while riding the national circuit-which they do rather often to help quiet the restless natives-have had to meet the question of why the vault cannot be open to all researchers and information made available to friend and foe alike, and why picking and choosing is always left to the Clan Plan.

Even those who might have had their own key to the vault (so to speak) found It fascinating that the shut door might have a possibility of being opened even a little. Donald R. McAdams, himself a competent researcher on Ellen and her writings, sounded a hopeful note over just such prospects in an article in Spectrum in 1980:

In the March 20 1980, Adventist Review in an article entitled "This I Believe About Ellen G. White " Neal Wilson informed the church about the Rea [Glendale] Committee. The initial report indicates that "in her writing Ellen White used sources more extensively than we have heretofore been aware of or recognized...." [italics added.]

Inevitably McAdams would react as he did, because he is an honest historian who himself spent much time in 1972­73 examining a chapter of The Great Controversy, comparing a chapter of it with half a chapter of historian James A. Wylie, and finding irrefutable evidence of dependence. The interesting and significant part of this story, as he tells It, is that the White Estate would not allow this church historian to release his work or conclusions to the church or the world. 7

McAdams had another reason to be concerned about what was taking place. He was one of the members of the special Glendale Committee to whom Wilson wrote. He had seen some of the evidence, had heard the January 28­29, 1980, presentation, and had himself stated to his colleagues that the evidence was indeed "startling. He had even suggested that "if every paragraph in The Great Controversy were footnoted in accordance with proper procedure, almost every paragraph would be footnoted." It is of interest that those committee members present from the White Estate did not challenge him. 9

How could they? They were sitting there with privileged information. Ronald D. Graybill, assistant secretary of the White Estate was present at the meeting. He too had been working in the files and had completed in May 1977 a comparison of Ellen White and her close paraphrasing of another historian, Merle d'Aubigne. As he continued his study, what should appear to his wondering eyes-not d Aubigne at all, but a popularized version of d'Aubigne prepared by the Reverend Charles Adams for young readers, and this material had been published first, not in The Great Controversy, but in the October 11,1883, Signs of the Times article entitled "Luther in the Wartburg. The conclusions of this rather simple cloak­and­dagger story were, as McAdams quotes Graybill:

So why didn't we say so in the first place? The nearest that we had ever come to that type of acknowledgment was from son Willie White

(letter of 4 November 1912):

Willie's statements would be modified in a 1969 statement by his son Arthur: "Mrs. White ever sought to avoid being influenced by others." 13

There was another member of the White Estate group who likewise sat quietly through that January 1980 meeting without tipping his hand. He was Robert W. Olson, appointed to head the White Estate on the retirement of Arthur L. White in 1978. Olson, more than perhaps anyone else in the room except W. Richard Lesher (the head of the Adventist Biblical Research Institute) knew where some of the bodies were buried, because some of those bodies were being resurrected faster than the burying services could be performed.

In 1977 and 1978 Olson received a number of letters that were opening new avenues of information on the relationship of Ellen to her book Patriarchs and Prophets. To Olson, the research had taken a nasty turn as it began to get close to The Desire of Ages. When he was asked about the persistent rumor that Ellen had received some rather human help in the preparation of Desire, he didn't seem to recall the letters or materials that he was getting except to express that the report of help was overdrawn and there was no reason to believe that The Desire of Ages was anything but the work of Ellen White. 14

He knew well that the trail to Ellen's "borrowing" was getting warm, for he had written a remarkable letter concerning it to the Estate staff on November 29, 1978, just two years before the meeting where he was now denying that any problem existed. The letter was a sensitive one and was not for public notice. To ensure fairness, I include the entire letter in the appendix section of this chapter. Portions are given here:

The solution suggested by this man of God, sworn to disseminate truth and light, was as follows:

Later it was explained at the Glendale Committee meeting that the letter was only a poor selection of words and their meaning could be misconstrued. 17 There was no misconstruing Arthur White's words, however, when he wrote at the same time on the same subject to the same group:

"Satan has ability to suggest doubts and devise objections to the pointed testimony that God sends.

One can close his eyes and hear that door clanging shut again still tighter, while the lost riders of fear and guilt go charging through the sky. It did not sound like an open­door policy when he continued:

It would be difficult to conclude from these two confidential missives that the people of the Adventist Church are encouraged to know all the truth about Ellen-including her skill in using others' material minus credit lines for her own works.

One further bit of information needs to be added to the picture to make it complete. Robert Olson was sitting through the meetings of the Glendale Committee with an ancient but haunting document virtually on his lap. It had been "discovered" only a few weeks before in the hall of the Estate offices by Desmond Ford in his search for truth. It was so revealing that had Olson read it or used it in the meeting the session might have been shortened by half a day or more. It came from the pen of W. W. Prescott (an earlier long­time leader and former General Conference vice president of the Adventist Church) who turned over some rocks himself. The letter was dated April 6 1915 and was written to Ellen's son Willie with whom Prescott from the contents of the letter had worked long end hard:

Your letter indicates a desire on your part to help me but I fear that it is a little late. The experience of the last six or eight years and especially the things concerning which I talked with you have had their effect on me in several ways. I have had some hard shocks to get over and after giving the best of my life to this movement I have little peace and satisfaction in connection with it and I am driven to the conclusion that the only thing for me to do IS to do quietly what I can do conscientiously and leave the others to go on without me. Of course this [is] far from a happy ending to my life­work but this seems to be the best adjustment that I am able to make. The way your mother's writings have been handled and the false impression concerning them which is still fostered among the people have brought great perplexity and trial to me. It seems to me that what amounts to deception through probably not intentional has been practiced in making some of her books and that no serious effort has been made to disabuse the minds of the people of what was known to be their wrong view concerning her writings. But it is no use to go into these matters. I have talked with you for years about them but it brings no change. I think however that we are drifting toward a crisis which will come sooner or later and perhaps sooner. A very strong feeling of reaction has already set in. 20

Evidence related later shows why Prescott was even more concerned than his letter indicates. He himself with the blessing of other officers had helped write some of the very books he was complaining about. How could he in good conscience (we have no evidence that he was not a man of good conscience) let the church go on believing that what he and others had helped to write in the name of devotional material was now to be received as the final authoritative voice of God and to become the basis of Adventist worldwide Christology (itself a subject that was of special interest to Prescott).

It is now evident-from the information that the White Estate possesses and from materials being leaked from other sources-that the church is in trouble in the matter of Ellen and her shoplifting. Too much is being identified from the places where she had shopped. As McAdams wrote in his Spectrum article:

Now the growing awareness in Adventist circles of Walter Rea's research and the studies of The Great Controversy called for another response in the Review.

With the assigning of Cottrell and Specht to the task of Ellen's The Desire of Ages, the church was throwing the heavies into the breach. It was thoroughly understood in high places that if the flood tide of facts and information washed away the foundation of The Desire of Ages, then the keystone in Saint Ellen's arch would be seriously jeopardized and the white lie exposed. Not everywhere was this understood but many leaders were well aware and very apprehensive.

It was a calculated risk, therefore, when the Adventists summoned two of their finest from retirement back to the war. The credentials of the two were impeccable. Cottrell, a third­generation Adventist, had served the church in various high­level capacities, including that of book editor at the Review and Herald, most of his life. Specht had been known as a scholar, department chairman, and dean at some of the church's finest institutions. Both men would be expected to bring to the task not only their lifetime of experience but their integrity as well.

The report issued at the end of six months of study was a shocker- not so much for what it said as for what it revealed by what it did not emphasize. The very fact that such high­level input was used showed that the church as a whole had not known about the white lie and that the leaders were determined to see that the church received only information that was acceptable to those leaders.

Both men would take the high road in the report. Specht, while conceding that Hanna had been used by Ellen throughout both the early edition of The Spirit of Prophecy (volumes two and three) and the later edition of The Desire of Ages, concluded that he still liked Ellen's paraphrasing of Hanna better than Hanna's own work. 22 Although he had found that the copying from Hanna had begun at the beginning and ended at the ending, he felt that the matter was not as serious as some had made it.

Cottrell, less cautious, calculated that 2.6 percent of Hanna had been taken by Ellen. 23 To obtain these incredible figures, he showed the kind of "creative bookkeeping" he had used.

To me. . . these facts. . .suggest that any similarity between the passages of Scripture cited, or the order in which they occur, is at least largely, if not entirely coincidental and completely useless for determining whether, or to what extent, Ellen White made use of Hanna...

Cottrell had fallen into the trap from which Francis D. Nichol had never extricated himself-using the study to prove that Ellen had not directly "quoted" from others as much as had been said. He seemed to overlook the fact that paraphrasing is the most subtle and potentially deceptive form of copying. Even McAdams said in his Spectrum article:

After endeavoring to diminish the influence of other authors on the writing of The Desire of Ages, Cottrell did concede:

Nevertheless, there are numerous instances of clear literary correlation which prove conclusively that Ellen White made use of some of the words, phrases, ideas and thought sequence. 26

In answer to his statement that "in no instance did either Dr. Specht or I find even one sentence in DA identical with LC, or even substantially so," 27 I suggest that the reader see the exhibit section for this chapter. 28 Better yet, one should obtain a copy of Hanna from a library and enlighten himself in person.

Although the text of the report as a whole was not given wide circulation; the 2.6 percent figure was quoted and repeated everywhere. Adventists grabbed onto it like a drowning man would clutch a lifejacket and head for shore shouting he was saved. In reality, the study was so limited in scope that some of the most serious matters remain to be dealt with. For example:

b. At least as early as the 1870s, and as late as the early 1900s, Ellen and her helpers were deeply and widely involved in drawing material from the writings of others.

e. Perhaps the most damaging evidence emerging is that whatever help Ellen had, human or divine, she had uncanny ability to go back and pick up new material each time the return was made. Sometimes the thoughts, words, and sentences that had been taken from one author in the early stages (1870­84) were deleted in the later product (The Desire of Ages). Sometimes an amplification of the same author's material was substituted. But sometimes (especially when the early copying had been extensive) material would be drawn from other sources or other authors in such a way that the color of the new threads did not clash with the ultimate pattern of the fabric being woven through the years. Clearly, the human planners knew well the maps they were using for all the trips of all those years. 30

However, by nature and practice an honest scholar, Cottrell later allowed his integrity to overcome his Adventist heritage and prejudice. His silence was broken on September 19, 1981, when the Los Angeles Times, in an article by John Dart, religious editor, quoted from an upcoming missive by Cottrell:

Cottrell's preliminary draft itself ("Our Present Crisis: Reaction to a Decade of Obscurantism") was even more specific and devastating for Its finger pointing, as it went on to say:

And finally he laid the blame on specific administrators:

Cottrell was only one of the many runners with more bad news for the church in its crisis. Fred Veltman, according to theA~lventist Review in the fall of 1980, was the man upon whose shoulders the mantle of truth was to rest. Because of the disturbance of the Rea study, reported the Review:

After surveying the material on the Ellen G. White controversy available to him, Veltman had written a detailed critique for the Presidents Executive Advisory Committee in Washington. In that report he quoted that same Raymond Cottrell as saying:

Edward Heppenstall, a long­time Adventist theologian, is likewise quoted by Veltman:

Even Desmond Ford, the Australian theologian, gives a devastating summary as reported in Veltman's words:

Veltman himself concludes:

The leaders of the church indeed found it hard to face reality, but it was obvious that something must be done, and done quickly. So, as always, the tired old men from PREXAD (the President's Executive Advisory Committee) and the White Estate, turned to the source they so often deny their members-the law. It seemed to be their last hope of quelling the storm which would not go away and for which they were unprepared.

The September 17, 1981 Review, heralded that their Catholic lawyer had declared that. Ellen White was not legally a plagiarist according to the lawyer's definition, and therefore her works did not constitute copyright infringement. 39 This report-clearly not coming to grips with the moral, spiritual, or theological implications at the heart of the matter-drew very little comfort and brought few sighs of relief from knowledgeable readers.

To add to all the confusion, Arthur Delafield, another tired but willing warrior, was called back to the fray. Delafield, who had been a circuit rider for the White Estate for over twenty­five years, wrote a reply to a letter from a lay member in Australia. In addition to raising questions, this layman had stated a conviction:

:

I must admit to feeling, at times, somewhat angered and disillusioned. Not with Walter Rea but with the "system." The question is not how to silence or to discredit Waiter Rea (or Forum, or anybody else for that matter), but whether what he says is true. I can live with the truth about Ellen White, but 1 would find it difficult to be enthusiastic about belonging to, let alone supporting and promoting, an organization which relied on falsehoods or intimidation m order to survive.

Delarleld's reply was a thriller. In typical pontifical style he declared:

Your letter of May 27 addressed to the president of the General Conference has arrived in this of fice. Elder Wilson certainly wishes to be remembered to you with warm brotherly feelings. His Administrative Assistant, Arthur Patzer, has asked that I respond since I have spent 25 years in the Ellen G. White Estate offices as one of the secretaries and now made a life­time trustee of the White Estate board....

I say that the foregoing would seem to be what Walter Rea has proven. The careful researcher, however ... is greatly distressed by Walter Rea's "evidence." I say this not because there is so much, but because he thinks there is so much of it and he is wrong. Dreadfully wrong. He has grossly exaggerated the situation. 41

Finally, his punch line came on page five:

I highly respect many of our Seventh­day Adventist theologians. I have sat at their feet and been taught by them. I admire and respect them highly. I would like to remind you, however, that you can search the Bible from Genesis to Revelation and you will not find a single text marking out theologians as having the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Scriptures indicate, however, that prophets have a gift of the holy Spirit. Ellen White had that gift and she was canonical insofar as doctrinal interpretation authority is concerned [italics added].42

Inasmuch as Delafield, now retired, was writing his reply on official General Conference stationery and invoking the name of the head divine of the church, Neal C. Wilson, as his authority for writing, it would seem that "the church" had finally unofficially rejected their controversial stand taken some twenty­four years before, when under some controversy and duress a "representative group of Seventh­day Adventist leaders, Bible teachers and editors" had declared through the official Adventist press:

3. That we do not regard them in the same sense as the Holy Scriptures, which stand alone and unique as the standard by which all other writings must bejudged.

Despite the best efforts of the 1957 "representative group" who had published the foregoing statements in Questions on Doctrine, now, in the old warrior's 1981 letter the blueprint of the past's extreme and paranoid views had finally come clear. Adventists, through tired old men, were telling the world that despite all the double­talk of the past and the deceptions of the present, they do indeed cast their lot with Ellen as their final authority, their first among equals. Through him, they, In effect, are proud to tell the world they represent a sect and are not about to become associated with non­members of their cult or any of the rest of the Christian community!

Truth has a way of eluding a "true believer" when the church spokesmen seem to be willing to overlook most of the information, most of its friendly critics, and all of the evidence In their endeavor to hide from reality.

Even another statement that surfaced from no less than W. C. White, Ellen's son, did not change the view that all she said must have come from God. In 1905 he was supposed to have said:

But is was no use. There would always be those who would say if Ellen touched it, or saw it, or was even aware of it-it had to come from God and was all inspired! Even that statement of oft­quoted by the Adventists that some librarian from the hallowed halls of the Library of Congress had designated The Desire of Ages one of the ten most impressive books on the life of Christ was found to have been muttered by some Adventist preacher on the way to work. But knowing this would not shake loose the true believer. Of such things are the white lies of this life made.

1. Ellen C. White, The Spirit of Prophecy (Battle Creek: Review and Herald, 1870­1884), vol. 2, p. 5.

2. Robert W. Olson, "EGW's Use of Uninspired Sources," photocopied (Washington: EGW Estate, 9 November 1979), pp. 1­4, 7, 8.

3. William S. Peterson, "Ellen White's Literary Indebtedness," Spectrum 3, no. 4 (Autumn 1971): 73­84. Since Peterson's article, others have appeared in Spectrum each year since 1971.

4. Neal C. Wilson to Glendale Committee on EGW Sources, 8 January 1980.

5. Jerry Wiley to Neal C. Wilson, 14 January 1980.

6. Donald R. McAdams, "Shifting views of Inspiration Spectrum 10, no. 4 (March 1980): 38.

7. Ibid., pp. 34­35.

8. Glendale Committee, "Ellen G. White and Her Sources," tapes (28­29 January 1980), McAdams remarks.

9. Ibid.

10. McAdams, "Shifting Views, "Spectrum 10, no. 4 (March, 1980): 35.

11. Ibid.

12. EGW, The Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 4, supplement quoting W. C. White's letter to W. W. Eastman, 12 May 1969, pp. 545­46.

13. Ibid., p. 535.

14. Olson, "Ellen C. White and Her Sources," tapes of address to Adventist Forum at Loma Linda, CA (January 1979).

15. Olson to EGW Estate Trustees, 29 November 1978, pp. 1­2.

16. Ibid., p. 5.

17. Glendale Committee, tapes, 28­29 January 1980.

18. Arthur L. White, "(Confidential) Comments on the Proposed Study of 'Desire of Ages,"' photocopied (Washington: EGW Estate, 5 December 1978),

19. Ibid., p. 5.

20. W. W. Prescott to DF 198).

W. C. White, 6 April 1915 (Washington: EGW Estate.

21. McAdams, "Shifting Views," Spectrum 10, no. 4 (Autumn 1971): 36­37.

22. Raymond F. Cottrell and Walter S. Specht, "The Literary Relationship between he Desire of Ages, by Ellen G. White, and The Life of Christ, by William Hanna, 2,pts, photocopied (Loma Linda University Library, Archives and Special Collections, I November 1979), pt. 2.

23. Ibid., pt. l.

24. Ibid., pt. l, pp. 3­4.

25. McAdams, "Shifting Views," Spectrum 10, no. 4 (Autumn 1971): 37.

26. Cottrell and Specht, "The Literary Relationship between EGW and WH," pt. l, p. 5.

27. Ibid.

28. See Appendix, Chapter 6 Comparison Exhibits showing Ellen G. White and William Hanna similarities.

29. Ibid.

30. Ibid.

31. John Dart, "Adventists Cite Legal Opinion To 'Clear' Prophet of Plagiarism, "Los Angeles Times (19 September 1981).

32. Raymond F. Cottrell, "Our Present Grisis: Reaction to a Decade of Obscurantism," photocopied draft.

33. Ibid.

34. [Unsigned editorial announcement], Adventist Review (27 November 1980).

35 Fred Veltman, "Report to PREXAD on the E. G. White Research Project; photocopied (Angwin, CA Life of Christ Research Project, n.d. [April 1981]), p. 21.

36. Ibid., p. 21.

37. Ibid., p. 22.

38. Ibid., pp. 24­25.

39. [Unsigned editorial announcement], "Ellen White's Use of Sources," Adventist Review (17 September 1981), p. 3. Also interviews Wlt attorney Victor L. Remik, pp. 4­6, and Warren L. Johns, p. 7.

40. Peter C. Drewer to Neal C. Wilson, 27 May 1981, p. 3.

41. D. Arthur Delafield to Peter C. Drewer, 24June 1981, pp. 1, 5.

42. Ibid., p. 5.

43. [Seventh­day Adventists], Seventh­day Adventists Answer Questions on Doctrine (Washington: RHPA, 1957), pp.89­9u.

44 W. C. White, "The Integrity of the Testimonies," presented at College View; Nebraska, 25 November 1905. EGW Estate DF 10 i, pp. 7­8, 11.

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