Ellen G. White: The Later Elmshaven Years: 1905-1915 (vol. 6)

Inspiration and Details of History

This leads us to an important point as The Great Controversy is studied, namely, just how much of detail was opened up to Ellen White in vision. In W. C. White's 1911 statement, one she twice read and fully approved as “a true and correct statement,” he explained: 6BIO 331.1

Mother has never claimed to be authority on history. The things which she has written out are descriptions of flashlight pictures and other representations given her regarding the actions of men, and the influence of these actions upon the work of God for the salvation of men, with views of past, present, and future history in its relation to this work. 6BIO 331.2

In connection with the writing out of these views, she has made use of good and clear historical statements to help make plain to the reader the things which she is endeavoring to present. When I was a mere boy, I heard her read D'Aubigne's History of the Reformation to my father. She read to him a large part, if not the whole, of the five volumes. She has read other histories of the Reformation. 6BIO 331.3

This has helped her to locate and describe many of the events and the movements presented to her in vision. This is somewhat similar to the way in which the study of the Bible helps her to locate and describe the many figurative representations given to her regarding the development of the great controversy in our day between truth and error.—WCW Letter, July 24, 1911 (see also Selected Messages 3:437). 6BIO 331.4

In writing in 1912 to the head of the publishing department of the Southwestern Union Conference, he explained: 6BIO 331.5

Regarding Mother's writings and their use as authority on points of history and chronology, Mother has never wished our brethren to treat them as authority regarding the details of history or historical dates. 6BIO 331.6

The great truths revealed to Mother regarding the controversy between good and evil, light and darkness, have been given to her in various ways, but chiefly as flashlight views of great events in the lives of individuals and in the experiences of churches, of bands of reformers, and of nations. 6BIO 331.7

He explained further what took place in the process of writing the book: 6BIO 332.1

When writing out the chapters for Great Controversy, she sometimes gave a partial description of an important historical event, and when her copyist who was preparing the manuscripts for the printer made inquiry regarding time and place, Mother would say that those things are recorded by conscientious historians. Let the dates used by those historians be inserted. 6BIO 332.2

And he emphasized the point regarding historical sources by repeating: 6BIO 332.3

When Controversy was written, Mother never thought that the readers would take it as authority on historical dates or use it to settle controversy regarding details of history, and she does not now feel that it should be used in that way. Mother regards with great respect the work of those faithful historians who devoted years of time to the study of God's great plan as presented in the prophecy, and the outworking of that plan as recorded in history.—WCW to W. W. Eastman, November 4, 1912 (see also Ibid., 3:446, 447 appendix B,). (Italics supplied throughout.) 6BIO 332.4

This understanding removes any fine points of a problem in handling historical quotations, et cetera, in the book. Furthermore, W. C. White, in the 1911 statement approved fully by his mother, addressed himself specifically to the matter of verbal inspiration in his mother's writings. He pointed out: 6BIO 332.5

Mother has never laid claim to verbal inspiration, and I do not find that my father, or Elder Bates, Andrews, Smith, or Waggoner, put forth this claim. If there were verbal inspiration in writing her manuscripts, why should there be on her part the work of addition or adaptation? It is a fact that Mother often takes one of her manuscripts, and goes over it thoughtfully, making additions that develop the thought still further.—WCW Letter, July 24, 1911 (see also Selected Messages 3:437). 6BIO 332.6