William Miller.Pdf

Adventist Heritage William Miller Script By Richard Wright William Miller was born in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, in 1792. He had little formal schooling, but he educated himself through reading widely. As a young man, Miller became a deist, a popular belief at the time that God had created the earth, but then left it to its own survival. William Miller served as a captain in the War of 1812. This experience caused him to re-evaluate his relationship with God. He converted to Christianity, joining the Baptist Church. In 1816, Miller – now living in upstate New York – began a systematic two- year study of the Bible, comparing text with text. His only study aid was a concordance. It was during this time that he came across the prophecy of Daniel 8. He was fascinated by Daniel 8:14. “Unto two-thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.” Miller interpreted the sanctuary as being the earth, and the cleansing as being the end of the sinful world. Applying the day- year principle, he came to believe that Jesus would return in 1843. Unlike most other Christians during the Second Great Awakening, Miller believed that Christ would return at the beginning of the Millennium, rather than at the end of this thousand-year period. Although William Miller came to the conviction in 1818 that Jesus would soon return, he was reluctant to share the belief with others. He continued to study for the next several years. Finally, in 1832, Miller promised God that he would share his views, if invited to do so. To Miller’s shock – and his initial dismay – he was asked to speak at a nearby church within a half-hour of making the promise. He reluctantly accepted the invitation. This was the beginning of a new life work for this farmer and local justice of the peace. Miller would continue to preach about the soon coming of Jesus for the rest of his life. The fledgling Millerite movement received a major boost in 1839 when Joshua V. Himes, an influential Boston pastor, accepted William Miller’s message and became one of its major promoters. Himes began to publish periodicals, such as the Signs of the Times and the Midnight Cry. He also secured the largest tent in existence at the time, and organized a series of camp meetings. Other prominent preachers joined William Miller in preaching about the imminent coming of Christ. These included Charles Fitch, Josiah Litch, and the former sea captain, Joseph Bates. Beginning in the summer of 1842, the Millerites held more than 130 camp meetings with a combined attendance of half a million people. This was one out of every 35 Americans at the time. Such a growing movement was bound to bring about a reaction from America’s thought leaders. While William Lloyd Garrison was generally sympathetic, other writers, such as John Greenleaf Whittier and Henry David Thoreau were quite critical. Major newspapers carried cartoons that made fun of Miller and his followers. What was more serious, however, was that many churches became quite hostile toward the Millerites. Many of these people were disfellowshipped from their local congregations. This prompted Charles Fitch to refer to the Second Angel’s Message of Revelation 14, and urge the people to “come out of Babylon.” William Miller had preached that the world would end in 1843. As the year came to an end, many Millerites – who were now also known as Adventists – were beginning to become concerned. A Millerite preacher named S.S. Snow began to preach that day of Christ’s return must be on the Jewish Day of Atonement – Yom Kipper. This was the tenth day of the seventh month of the Jewish calendar. The date was October 22, 1844. Miller, Himes, and the other Adventist leaders were reluctant to fix such a certain date. However, this so-called “Seventh Month Movement” gained momentum, and finally, even these leaders accepted October 22 as the date of Christ’s return. As the date drew near, excitement continued to spread throughout North America. By October, at least 100,000 people were fervently awaiting the return of Jesus. Many followers had left their crops unharvested, their shops and stores unstocked. People who had recently lost loved-ones saw no need to mourn, since they expected to see them again in just a few days. October 22, 1844 arrived and many Millerites gathered together in groups, while others remained in their homes. It was a day of great excitement and expectation. These people eagerly awaited the coming of Jesus! .

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