Ellen G. White Died, a Mrs

International Journal for Clergy June 1986 The Gift of Prophecy and "Thought Voices" BY I. R. SPANGLER/4 How to Write a Bible BY GEORGE E. RICE/8 Harvest 90 Administrative Slogan? BY MARK A. FINLEY/11____________________________ Christ©s Human Nature: An Alternate View BY THOMAS A. DAVIS/14___________________________ A Quick Response Says We Care BY EUGENE HAMLIN/17_____________________________ Making Sabbath Special BY EDNA MAYE LOVELESS/19 Letters/2 Democracy by Design Editorial/28 BY JOHN PFEIFFER/22 _____________ Shop Talk/31 Burnout in Clergy Families Biblio File/32 BY MADELINE S. JOHNSTON/24______ Letters Inspiration and originality ter is not necessarily negated by their borrowing). The New Testament uses The thesis articulated in Crosby©s use of sources. In writing my book The the Old Testament in just this way. Thus article "Does Inspired Mean Original?" Advent Hope for Human Hopelessness, I Bacchiocchi©s argument pointing out (February 1986), namely that "original have used over a period of five years some that despite their verbal similarities, ity is not one of the tests of a prophet" 100 books. Yet I like to believe that my there are differences between the teach because Bible writers made "extensive book is original because I do not know of ings of Christ and those of Ahikar is use of uninspired sources," is destructive any other author who has conceived and irrelevant because such differences are to to the authority of the Bible and based on executed a study of the Second Advent be expected; they are no greater than the fictitious reasoning. in the way I have done it. differences between many an Old Testa First, the assumption that literary To be "original" does not necessarily ment source and its New Testament resemblance implies literary dependency require orginating new words, sen allusions. Using arguments like the ones is gratuitous and unfounded. Anyone tences, imageries, or illustrations. On Bacchiocchi uses, for example, I could who has done some writing can testify to the contrary, it often means using "prove" that Revelation 14:11 does not this point. Some readers of my books familiar knowledge to express new con borrow from Isaiah 34:10; and this is only have suggested that I have drawn some of cepts. This is the sense in which Bible one of a hundred similar examples that the ideas from sources that I did not even writers were "original." Unfortunately, could be drawn from Revelation alone. know existed. A colleague related a Crosby©s article fails to make this clarifi similar experience. Christ and many cation, choosing instead to conclude Finally, I used the word original in its New Testament writers would be equally with the misleading statement: "In popular sense. I agree that the New surprised to learn that they were being conclusion, we see that originality is not Testament and Ellen White©s writings accused of drawing "extensively from one of the tests of a prophet." Samuele are "original" in Bacchiocchi©s sense in nonbiblical works." Bacchiocchi, Ph.D., Berrien Springs, spite of borrowing. Tim Crosby, Ellijay, Second, writers like Crosby fail to Michigan. Georgia. recognize that Christ and most Bible writers had limited access to literary Crosby replies sources. Scrolls were very expensive, and If my thesis that inspired writers made Nature of Christ very few private individuals or "public" extensive use of uninspired sources is In considering the recent presenta libraries could afford to own a significant "destructive to the authority of the tions in MINISTRY on the nature of Christ, collection of literary works. Religious Bible," as Bacchiocchi states, then the one is again impressed by the fact that knowledge was transmitted mostly fact that Ellen White made extensive use there are no simple answers or solutions. through oral tradition. Thus if any of sources in some of her books (which In some respects, Jesus Christ was far "borrowing" of sentences, imageries, has been demonstrated beyond reason superior to Adam before the Fall; in and concepts did occur, it could have able doubt) is destructive of her author other aspects, He was similar to Adam come from oral religious knowledge, not ity. It is this error that I was trying to prior to his fall; and in yet other respects, from "nonbiblical works." Support for refute in my article. He was like Adam after the Fall. this view is provided by the fact that As to the possibility of oral transmis If we are looking for easy and quick none of the biblical examples given by sion, the mode of transmission is irrele answers to this problem, we might be Crosby represent an exact quotation vant to the thesis of the article. It does searching a long time. If Jesus Christ is from the alleged nonbiblical sources. not make any significant difference truly God and truly man, then we must Third, what at first appears as a literary whether the writer acquired the idea expect certain profound mysteries about resemblance is more apparent than real. through his eyes or his ears; he is still His person that will keep the brightest One example given by Crosby is the using sources. Moreover, while a certain intellects on the stretch. alleged literary resemblance between amount of coincidental similarities It was P. T. Forsyth who made a Christ©s parable of the sheep and goats between two works may be allowed, this succinct remark in this connection and the Testament of the Twelve Patri does not explain the lengthy parallels concerning our Lord. He wrote: "Beware archs. In this case any literary depen between Enoch and Revelation or Enoch of clearness, consistency, and simplicity, dency is negated by the fact that in the and Jude (which does contain an exact especially about Christ. The higher we Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs it is quote from Enoch). go, the more polygonal the truth is. not the Lord who commends His "sheep" The fact that there are theological Thesis and antithesis are both true" (The for having helped the needy, but it is the differences between source and borrower Person and Place of Jesus Christ, p. 71). needy who thanks God for having does not negate the possibility of bor Let me endeavor to give a brief supplied his basic need. Such a concep rowing. Of course, the borrower modifies compound statement on the nature of tual contrast hardly allows for literary his source and uses it in an original way Christ taken from different sources in borrowing. (see Robert Johnston, "Twisting Their Ellen White to illustrate the fact that Fourth, the originality of a Bible Tales," MINISTRY, October 1985, for thesis and antithesis can both be true: writer or of any writer, for that mat additional examples of Christ©s creative (Continued on page 29) MINISTRY/JUNE/1986 EDITOR: First Glance J. Robert Spangler EXECUTIVE EDITOR: J. David Newman ASSISTANT EDITORS: David C. Jarnes Kenneth R. Wade EDITORIAL ASSOCIATE AND About 11 months after Ellen G. White died, a Mrs. Margaret W. SEMINAR DIRECTOR: Rowen, an Adventist living in Los Angeles, began having visions. Rex D. Edwards Witnesses described her physical state in vision in terms similar to CONTRIBUTING EDITORS: Robert H. Brown those used to describe Mrs. White: Her eyes were wide open and P. Gerard Damsteegt unblinking, they could detect no breathing, and her body was rigid. Raoul Dederen Lawrence T. Geraty When the church did not accept her claims as authentic, she started Roland R. Hegstad her own movement the "Los Angeles, California, Seventh-day Marie Spangler Adventist Reform Church." Later she forged a statement that Leo R. Van Dolson authorized herself as Mrs. White©s legitimate successor. After signing CONSULTING EDITORS: C. E. Bradford Mrs. White©s name to the manuscript, she had one of her followers Stoy Proctor slip it into the White manuscript files.- The poorly done forgery was Richard Lesher Kenneth]. Mittleider 0 exposed soon after. N. C. Wilson Within a few years Mrs. Rowen began predicting that probation SPECIAL CONTRIBUTORS: would close February 6, 1924, and Christ would come exactly one Floyd Bresee year later. Many of her followers sold their homes and furniture to Carlos Aeschlimann support the work of carrying that message to as many people as EDITORIAL SECRETARIES: Ella Rydzewski possible. The failure of her prophecy opened the eyes of the editor of Mary Louise McDowell the journal advocating her teachings. When he published an issue ART DIRECTOR: repudiating Mrs. Rowen, she made an attempt on his life. That Byron Steele resulted in a prison term and effectively ended her influence. (A. L. DESIGN AND LAYOUT: White tells the story in "When Mrs. White Was Gone," Review and Mark O©Connor Herald, June 15, 1967, pp. 6-8.) G. W. Busch Our church has had more than its share of people claiming the gift MARKETING: of prophecy. Many have been sincere, not intending to deceive, as Tom Kapusta ADVERTISING SALES: Mrs. Rowen apparently did. But they have been sincerely wrong. We Jeff Blumenberg are now experiencing a burst of claims to this gift. In the lead article, SUBSCRIBER SERVICES: beginning on the next page, our senior editor shares the conclusions Larry Burtnett at which he arrived after carefully investigating several of the current INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENTS: "messengers." Africa-Indian Ocean, John W. Fowler Coincidentally, another article in this issue adds confirmation to Eastern Africa, Harry A. Cartwright Euro-Africa, Johannes Mager J. R. Spangler©s conclusions. Dr. George Rice develops a picture of Far East, James H. Zachary the kind of inspiration that produced most of the books of the Bible. Inter-America, Salim Japas North America, William C. Scales, Jr.

Load more