Loma Linda Messages

J. A. Burden to E. G. White, July 9, 1907

Loma Linda, Calif. July 9, 1907.

Mrs. E. G. White, Sanitarium, Calif.

Dear Sister:—

I have not written you, I believe, since my return from the East. I found the work at Loma Linda on my return moving forward very encouragingly, but the workers bearing responsibility considerably worn by the extra burdens carried during my absence. Elder Warren was an excellent help to them in counsel and spiritual labor, but could not carry or enter into the business details as I have been trained to do. He has now gone East, visiting the Young People's Convention and a few of the churches with a view of setting before our young people who may desire a medical training the advantages to be obtained at Loma Linda. LLM 215.1

Just a word now in reference to our school here and the question of State recognition for those who graduate from the medical course. I learned that recent legislation secured by the osteopaths has opened the way for our school and students to receive like recognition if we strengthen our teaching faculty, and make the fundamental branches that we are teaching sufficiently strong; that is to say, our students who graduate and can pass the State Board examination on the ten fundamental branches of study that we are teaching, will be re-licensed by the State to practice the healing art as we teach it, to collect fees for their work, etc., the same as physicians of other schools. LLM 215.2

Now we would like to know if you have any light on this particular point. Would it be well for us to make some special effort to secure the advantages for our students and school under this new law? I see this point of interest and (377) advantage in it, that it would open the way for our medical missionaries to become self-supporting in the practice of their healing art, as they probably could not without some such State recognition. On the other hand, there is the danger that comes from the temptation to make their work largely or wholly professional, because of financial remuneration, and yet it seems to me that we must rely quite largely, after all, on the integrity of the workers for the missionary phase of the development of the work. I wish I could talk this matter over with you from various standpoints, but if the Lord has given or does give you light on this particular point, of course that will be sufficient. LLM 215.3

An excellent spiritual experience has come into the school at the close of its work, which, I think, has turned the hearts of the students more fully to the Lord, and caused them to feel the importance of giving their lives to the medical missionary phase of the work. Quite a number are ready and willing to enter the field during vacation. Many of them, however, desire to continue their studies another year, hence the question of finances confronts them, as well as the gaining of an experience in the field work. We had hoped the conference would in a way assist in this work by at least supporting one or two to lead the younger workers in the field work, but things have not worked out as we hoped; in fact, the work that Sister Starr has been doing will have to stop unless some other means of supporting it can be found, as the conference has withdrawn its support, and she has no funds to go ahead, and with the care of her family, cannot possibly be self-supporting in her work. We feel deeply the need of funds to keep this branch of the school work moving forward. All our students must have experience in the field work. LLM 215.4

While praying over the matter, it came to me that we (378) might possibly do something for this branch of the work if we could get the food work started. You remember it was presented to you a long time ago that a small food factory run on a missionary basis would be a great blessing to the sanitarium and surrounding country. So I called the workers together and presented to them this plan,—that we secure ten persons who could put in five hundred dollars apiece to build the bakery and equip it for work, and let all proceeds from the work, aside from paying the running expenses, be used to support these field workers. Now, if we could get this work started so that it would be making a profit of one hundred dollars a month, which does not seem an unreasonable thing to do, this would help us in supporting these field workers. The plan has met with the favor of the workers to whom I presented it, and already we have five who are willing to put in five hundred dollars each to start the work, most of them will leave it in without interest until such time as it may be returned to them. This would enable us to get this much-needed facility started without increasing the debt of Loma Linda, and at the same time help to open the way for the missionary field work, that is, if it is successful in making something more than its expenses, which I believe it will be if those who supply the money and those who engage in the work take hold of it in this unselfish way. LLM 216.1

I am writing Sister Gotzian and others to see if they will take hold with us. We ought to have about ten persons who would put in five hundred dollars each, as it would take about five thousand dollars to put up the building and equip it with machinery and supply the working capital for the business. If you see any light in this plan, or no objection to it, we should be glad to hear from you. LLM 216.2

I did not see the results from my trip East in a (379) financial way that I had hoped to, as I was not permitted to make a call for funds. I presented your letters to the different presidents where I visited, but each of them had plans of his own for raising funds for different purposes, which he did not like to have interfered with; so I thought it wise not to press the matter. However, I made a good many friends and acquaintances among the brethren and sisters who have means, and shall probably see results later in the way of loans if we need them. Their meetings were planned for without reference to me, hence they did not see their way clear to give me as much time to present my message; but wherever I did, it had good results, especially in encouraging faith in the testimonies, which have led this people through very trying experiences. LLM 216.3

As I told the story of the providence that had fulfilled the message concerning the medical work in S. Calif., many hearts were deeply stirred, and faith and courage in the message revived. In South Dakota, where I was given the most opportunity to speak, the entire camp was deeply stirred with my message. One brother, worth about fifty thousand dollars, came to me after the meeting, saying how glad he was that he had heard the story of how God was reorganizing the medical work under the direction of the testimonies; that for a long time he, with many others, have been bewildered by the influence from Battle Creek through the literature sent them and personal work of some who have been visiting them; that they had quit paying their tithe, and were fighting the one hundred fifty thousand dollar fund; that just before coming to the campmeeting he had received a lot of literature from Battle Creek, but had said to his wife that he would lay it aside until after campmeeting. He now felt that the things he had heard in the talk I gave had opened his eyes to the situation. He mentioned many others, one of whom he said was worth a hundred thousand dollars, who were in a like condition (380) with himself. He also pointed out quite an influential man on the grounds, who, he said, was working personally all through the camp and had letters of communication from Battle Creek, prejudicing the minds of the people concerning the organized work. This was the closing meeting of the camp, so I did not have time to follow up the work. LLM 216.4

My first talk at the campground so stirred the people that some the Conference Committee did not wish me to say anything more on the subject, and I think planned to crowd out my talk. But the president of the conference did what he could to give me another hour, and finally got it appointed between four and five o'clock the last day of the meeting. It so happened that the other meetings ran over time, so they took up the appointment; but the people were so anxious to hear the rest of the story that they demanded that the appointments for the next hour (five o'clock) be taken up, and the time given to me, so the large tent was crowded while I spoke for an hour and ten minutes. The people were intensely interested, and after the meeting was over, surrounded me in a crowd, asking questions for half an hour. LLM 217.1

I presented the subject under the broad principle of the text, “To the law and to the testimony,” making it clear that these are the two means through which God accomplishes His work with the children of men; that the law God spoke with His own voice is one agency, and the Spirit of Prophecy is the other agency that He has used all through the ages to correct, encourage and build up His work and His people; that the real difficulty with the people had been their reluctance to accept the light given by the Spirit of Prophecy in their particular day and age. In the days of Jeremiah the people did not question the leadings of (381) God through Moses; likewise in the days of Christ the people of that day did not question the leadings of God through Jeremiah and the prophets. So in the closing work of the message, God has distinctly stated that these same two agencies will be used in closing up the work. LLM 217.2

From the rise of this message, all who are acquainted with it know how the Spirit of Prophecy has been the chosen instrument of God to mold, fashion, and direct the message as a whole. But as difficulties have arisen, and the wisdom of men has failed, and the work come into trying positions, the Lord by the Spirit of Prophecy has stepped in and always brought success out of defeat. I carefully traced the workings of this influence in the reorganization of the educational work when the crisis came to this branch of the work through the influence of worldly policies. I showed how the same instrument had led to reorganization of the publishing work and of the General Conference work. In all these movements, the wisdom of God had been made manifest through the testimonies in the results that had come to the work after the foolishness of man's wisdom had apparently well nigh wrecked it; and now we had come to a similar crisis in the medical department, and God had chosen the same instrumentality to bring light and harmony into this branch of the work, where man's wisdom had brought confusion. I then related the story of the development of the work in Southern California, and the wonderful providences attending it as the light of the testimonies had been followed. LLM 217.3

At the close of the meeting many came to me and said that they would not have missed it for anything, that it had done them more good than anything else they had heard at the campmeeting. So while I did not see accomplished directly for Loma Linda what I had hoped to see, nor nearly what might have been done if the brethren at the campmeeting had not held me off so exclusively from talking of these things to the people, (382) I feel sure the hand of the Lord was in my going East. LLM 218.1

Personally I was greatly refreshed, as I had time for study and thought, and was relieved from the perplexing details that have been constantly upon me day and night in the development of these institutions. I returned home with at least a clearer view of the work to be accomplished. LLM 218.2

I was especially interested in presenting before the young the plan and design of the educational work in medical missionary lines which we are undertaking at Loma Linda. As I presented the work, I could myself see more clearly what God designed those who qualify in these lines are to accomplish, in contrast with much of the work that has been done in the past. The presentation met with a ready response in the hearts of the people. They would see that such a plan, if carried out, would be in harmony with the sacred work that is committed to us as missionaries. LLM 218.3

We shall be glad to hear from you whenever you can write to us. LLM 218.4

Yours truly, (Signed) J. A. Burden.

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