Messenger of the Lord

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Various Effects of Menopause

Some have alleged that Ellen White’s open, or public, visions ceased after menopause, strongly suggesting a causal link between physiology and her visions. She herself dated menopause at 1869. 22 Even if her open visions stopped in 1869 or shortly thereafter, that could be sheer coincidence. However, people reported observing public visions in 1879, and the latest in 1884, as recalled by J. N. Loughborough at the 1893 General Conference session. 23 MOL 471.9

No evidence exists to even intimate that public visions grew less frequent because of menopause; the real reason was that in later years one of the chief purposes for public visions was no longer needed. By the 1870s Ellen White’s writings were widely published; her public witness to her divine call had been established in the experiences of many thousands of witnesses. 24 MOL 472.1