Ellen G. White’s View of the Role of Women in the SDA Church
B. Specific Counsels Concerning Appropriate Categories of Service:
1. At Home EGWVRWSDA 5.17
a. Family duties/responsibilities: EGWVRWSDA 5.18
(1) If married, aid husband in his work/interests. EGWVRWSDA 5.19
(a) Encourage, make happy, be a blessing to him (Welfare Ministry, 157-59). EGWVRWSDA 5.20
(2) If children present, child-training, character-development: EGWVRWSDA 5.21
(a) A mother’s first duty (Welfare Ministry, 158). EGWVRWSDA 5.22
(b) In no case neglect husband/children/home duties (Welfare Ministry, 164). EGWVRWSDA 5.23
(3) Assist husband as adviser, counselor, companion, and co-worker (Welfare Ministry, 160). EGWVRWSDA 5.24
b. Care of orphaned/homeless children: EGWVRWSDA 5.25
(1) Help them unlearn many things; reform bad traits. EGWVRWSDA 5.26
(2) Teach new concepts, self-control; dispel ignorance. EGWVRWSDA 5.27
(3) Pity and love. EGWVRWSDA 5.28
(4) Train for Christ (Welfare Ministry, 226-28). EGWVRWSDA 5.29
c. Correspondence: EGWVRWSDA 5.30
(1) Write to friends, acquaintances: learn their true feelings in spiritual matters; present truth in simplicity (Welfare Ministry, 147, 148). EGWVRWSDA 5.31
(2) Teach the truth by epistolary correspondence (Welfare Ministry, 165). EGWVRWSDA 5.32
d. Personal growth and self-improvement: EGWVRWSDA 5.33
(1) Develop/cultivate personal powers for God to employ in soul-saving work (Welfare Ministry, 145). EGWVRWSDA 5.34
(2) Become intelligent on how to work the most successfully/methodically in bringing souls to Christ (Welfare Ministry, 165). EGWVRWSDA 5.35
2. At the Local-Church Level EGWVRWSDA 5.36
a. Teach a children’s Sabbath School class; pray with children (Welfare Ministry, 165). EGWVRWSDA 5.37
b. Volunteer tasks: EGWVRWSDA 6.1
(1) Serve as local church clerk; too much church work is neglected (Welfare Ministry, 147). EGWVRWSDA 6.2
c. Organization of small personal-growth/study groups for: EGWVRWSDA 6.3
(1) Devotional study of word, prayer, fellowship. EGWVRWSDA 6.4
(2) Raise consciousness-level of women, to rise from their discouragement and feel they can do a work for the Lord (Welfare Ministry, 144). EGWVRWSDA 6.5
3. Home-Visitation Work (“various lines of” Welfare Ministry, 160) EGWVRWSDA 6.6
a. Social fellowship (“quietly visit” Evangelism, 463) EGWVRWSDA 6.7
(1) Converse with families, mothers, children (Welfare Ministry, 146, 165). EGWVRWSDA 6.8
(2) Demonstrate a genuine interest in people—including the children—let them see that you love them (Evangelism, 460). EGWVRWSDA 6.9
(3) Speak cheering, encouraging words, especially to the poor (Welfare Ministry, 147, 148). EGWVRWSDA 6.10
b. Practical in-home assistance with household tasks/needs: EGWVRWSDA 6.11
(1) Practical, personal labor in doing chores (Welfare Ministry, 146). EGWVRWSDA 6.12
(2) Give money to relieve temporal necessities, especially in cases of widows/orphans in affliction (Welfare Ministry, 148). EGWVRWSDA 6.13
(3) Seek to make occupants more comfortable (Welfare Ministry, 166). EGWVRWSDA 6.14
(a) “Real charity helps men to help themselves. True beneficence means more than mere gifts. It means a genuine interest in the welfare of others. We should seek to understand the needs of the poor and distressed, and to give them the help that will benefit them most. To give thought and time and personal effort costs far more than merely to give money. But it is the truest charity (The Ministry of Healing, 194, 195).” EGWVRWSDA 6.15
c. Training occupants in practical duties (instructing ignorant, Evangelism, 459): EGWVRWSDA 6.16
(1) In cooking. EGWVRWSDA 6.17
(2) In mending clothing. EGWVRWSDA 6.18
(3) In nursing, treating sick; relieving suffering. EGWVRWSDA 6.19
(4) In proper care of the home. EGWVRWSDA 6.20
(5) In teaching children to do errands of love for those less fortunate (Welfare Ministry, 75). EGWVRWSDA 6.21
d. Counseling the inexperienced (Evangelism, 459): EGWVRWSDA 6.22
(1) Reach hearts, make them tender (Welfare Ministry, 162). EGWVRWSDA 6.23
(2) Especially helping other women in problems; acting as an intermediary between them and male ministers (Evangelism, 460, 461). EGWVRWSDA 6.24
e. Spiritual instruction: EGWVRWSDA 6.25
(1) Talk words of Christ to perishing souls (Welfare Ministry, 143). EGWVRWSDA 6.26
(2) Pray with people (Welfare Ministry, 165). EGWVRWSDA 6.27
(3) Study Bible with people: EGWVRWSDA 6.28
(a) Read it. EGWVRWSDA 6.29
(b) Explain it (Welfare Ministry, 146, 148, 160, 161; Evangelism, 456, 457). EGWVRWSDA 6.30
(4) Sing with, and for, others (Evangelism, 463). EGWVRWSDA 6.31
(a) Work of “sunshine bands” (Wm 75). EGWVRWSDA 6.32
(5) Distribute SDA literature (Welfare Ministry, 162, 165). EGWVRWSDA 6.33
(6) Comfort the sorrowing, bereaved (Evangelism, 459). EGWVRWSDA 6.34
4. Public ministry: EGWVRWSDA 7.1
a. Training other women (including blacks) in: EGWVRWSDA 7.2
(1) Nursing. EGWVRWSDA 7.3
(2) Cooking. EGWVRWSDA 7.4
(3) Colporteur work. EGWVRWSDA 7.5
(4) Bible instructor’s work (Evangelism, 469). EGWVRWSDA 7.6
b. Assist minister-husband in his field work (Evangelism, 472). EGWVRWSDA 7.7
c. Conduct camp-meeting Bible classes (Evangelism, 473, 474). EGWVRWSDA 7.8
d. Co-operate with Women’s Christian Temperance Union workers in laboring for temperance reform on behalf of total abstinence—harmonize with them as far as possible (Welfare Ministry, 162-64). EGWVRWSDA 7.9
e. “Gospel ministry” from pulpit of church: EGWVRWSDA 7.10
(1) There are women who should be chosen who can present truths of word “in a clear, intelligent, and straight forward manner” (Evangelism, 472). EGWVRWSDA 7.11
(2) A Bible instructor in Australia who was just as efficient as the male minister; in his absence she addressed the congregation (Evangelism, 473). EGWVRWSDA 7.12
(3) To Mrs. S.M.I. Henry, an especially able platform speaker, Mrs. White opened her heart: EGWVRWSDA 7.13
“We believe fully in church organization, but in nothing that is to prescribe the precise way in which we must work; for all minds are not reached by the same methods.
“Each person has his own lamp to keep burning. Very much more light shines from one such lamp onto the path of the wanderer, than would be given by a whole torch light procession got up for a parade and show. Oh, what a work may be done if we will not stretch ourselves beyond our measure!
“Teach this, my sister. You have many ways opened before you. Address the crowd whenever you can; hold every jot of influence you can by any association that can be made the means of introducing the leaven to the meal. Every man and every woman has a work to do for the Master....” (Evangelism, 473).