The Critics of Ellen G. White and the Bible
To attack One is to invariably attack the Other
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The Bible and Ellen G. White are both under constant attack today. The charges raised against the inspiration have been met with solid responses and yet the attacks continue to resurface as if the claims were not refuted. This is a paper we ask our readers to read carefully as there are issues highlighted here that could effectively stir your faith in the inspired Word. The objective of this paper is to briefly illustrate that the common attacks used against the Bible and Ellen G. White are of a similar nature, and to attack one is to invariably attack the other. We also want to highlight that the logic used by the atheists, Muslims and even professed Christians to discredit the word of God is the same logic used to undermine the writings of Ellen G. White.
Important note: Please exercise extreme caution if you decide to venture into non-SDA external websites, especially the websites specializing on attacking the bible, as they are plagued with confusion and error. Also note that we may not agree with everything presented or how something is presented in some of these defense sites.
Important note: Please exercise extreme caution if you decide to venture into non-SDA external websites, especially the websites specializing on attacking the bible, as they are plagued with confusion and error. Also note that we may not agree with everything presented or how something is presented in some of these defense sites.
Common Attack 1: Contradictions
Alleged Bible Contradictions
#9) When did David bring the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem? Before defeating the Philistines or after?
(a) After (2 Samuel 5 and 6)
(b) Before (I Chronicles 13 and 14)
#50) Did Jesus die before (Matthew 27:50-51; Mark 15:37-38), or after (Luke 23:45-46) the curtain of the temple was torn?
Source: Contradiction #9 & #50 (Islamawareness.net:101 Bible Contradictions)
(a) After (2 Samuel 5 and 6)
(b) Before (I Chronicles 13 and 14)
#50) Did Jesus die before (Matthew 27:50-51; Mark 15:37-38), or after (Luke 23:45-46) the curtain of the temple was torn?
Source: Contradiction #9 & #50 (Islamawareness.net:101 Bible Contradictions)
Response to Bible Contradictions : 101 Contradiction Cleared Up
Alleged Ellen White Contradictions
1) Was the plan of salvation made after the fall?
EGW: YES "The kingdom of grace was instituted immediately after the fall of man, when a plan was devised for the redemption of the guilty race" (Great Controversy, p. 347).
BIBLE: NO "For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight" (Ephesians 1:4).
Source: Contradiction 1): culthelp.info: Contradictions
EGW: YES "The kingdom of grace was instituted immediately after the fall of man, when a plan was devised for the redemption of the guilty race" (Great Controversy, p. 347).
BIBLE: NO "For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight" (Ephesians 1:4).
Source: Contradiction 1): culthelp.info: Contradictions
Response to Ellen White Contradictions: Adventist Defense League: Response to Elder Olson's - The Bible and Ellen White
Common Attack 2: Plagiarism
Bible Writers Plagiarized
“The Christians boast about a supposedly common cord amongst the writers of the 66 Protestant booklets and the writers of the 73 Roman Catholic booklets called the "Holy Bible." Some common cord there is, for Matthew and Luke, or whoever they were, had plagiarized 85% word for word from Mark!” Plagiarism or literary kidnapping.
Source: jamaat.net: Bible
Source: jamaat.net: Bible
Ellen White Plagiarized
Plagiarism: "This is a word that is used to signify "literary theft," or taking the productions of another and passing them off as one s own. Harsh as it seems, the definition would characterize Ellen at age seventeen as a thief-and one who remained so the rest of her life, with enormous help and encouragement from others".
Source: bible.ca: Plagiarism
Response to Plagiarism: ellenwhiteanswers.org-answers-plagarism
Common Attack 3: Shocking Statements
Alleged Shocking, Embarrassing Bible statements
“This article contains X-rated text - Viewer's discretion is advised!”
Source: answering-christianity.com: x_rated
Response to shocking statements: Answering Islam: Answering Embarassing statements
Alleged Shocking, Embarrassing Ellen White statements
“Her writings contain superstitions, fables, myths, falsehoods, and absurdities”
Source: nonegw.org:shockers
Source: nonegw.org:shockers
Response to shocking statements: ellenwhiteanswers:answershardsayings
Common Attack 4: Failed Prophecies
Failed Prophecies of the Bible
“Christians claim that the Bible has hundreds of fulfilled prophecies, and is proof of its divine inspiration. In actuality, these so called fulfilled prophecies failed, were false or weren't prophecies at all”
Source: faithskeptic.50megs.com:propheciesFailed Prophecies of Ellen White
“Ellen White simply believed what others believed in her time-- that England could declare war on the U.S.”
Source: ellenwhiteexposed.com
Response to Failed Predictions: whiteestate.org: Answers
Ellen G. White's Critics Eventually Becomes Bible Critics?
We quote a statement by a famous critic of Ellen G. White:
"Walter Rea inadvertently revealed the crux of the matter when he told his College Place audience on Saturday afternoon: 'Don't you do to the Bible what I am doing to the writings of Ellen White or you will destroy the Bible, too." -Alden Thompson, quoted in The North Pacific Union Gleaner, February 1, 1982,p. 10. red bolding added. (Source: ellenwhitedefend.com: W_rea)
Has Walter Rea been succesful in sticking to his warning? We quote the following about Walter Rea from truthorfables.net:walter_rea (Please click the link to see the entire article) :
“We first had occasion to speak with Walter Rea, the author of The White Lie, around January of 2000. In our conversation, we asked him if the weapons used against Mrs. White could also be used to discredit the Bible writers. Indeed liberal theologians have accused the Bible writers of plagiarism for a long time, the same type of accusation Rea levels at Ellen White.
Rea responded to our question by saying that he:
• does not take the Bible literally,
• does not believe in a world-wide flood,
• does not believe that God told Abraham to offer up Isaac, and
• does not believe God told the Israelites to slay the Canaanites.
After finally making contact with bible.ca regarding their bogus plagiarized pictures charge (see plagiarized Pictures? ), which was excerpted out of The White Lie, their webmaster asked us to get Rea to send him an email acknowledging that his book was in error. We thus called Rea at his home in central California on November 19, 2003.
Rea told us that he doesn't have access to the internet, and so couldn't send an email. We asked him if we could get something from him in writing to send to bible.ca, and he told us that he doesn't have time to do that. We asked him, if someone proved, as we have done, that his book is in error, would he correct that for the next printing. He said, "No." The Bible has problems, he said. Why should people get bent out of shape if his book has problems too?
How credible, therefore, can we consider the information in The White Lie to be?
By no means, though, is Rea too busy to write any letters whatsoever. He told us that if we sent him a note, he would be happy to send us some material showing how the Bible is wrong. One example he gave us earlier in this conversation was how, in his opinion,
God never turned Lot's wife into a pillar of salt.
"But what about, 'All Scripture is given by inspiration of God' (2 Tim. 3:16), and, 'Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.' (John 17:17)?" we asked. It mattered not what verse we quoted; his opinion about the Bible stories being wrong remained the same.
If you wonder if we are portraying our conversations with Rea accurately, feel free to talk to him yourself.”
Rea responded to our question by saying that he:
• does not take the Bible literally,
• does not believe in a world-wide flood,
• does not believe that God told Abraham to offer up Isaac, and
• does not believe God told the Israelites to slay the Canaanites.
After finally making contact with bible.ca regarding their bogus plagiarized pictures charge (see plagiarized Pictures? ), which was excerpted out of The White Lie, their webmaster asked us to get Rea to send him an email acknowledging that his book was in error. We thus called Rea at his home in central California on November 19, 2003.
Rea told us that he doesn't have access to the internet, and so couldn't send an email. We asked him if we could get something from him in writing to send to bible.ca, and he told us that he doesn't have time to do that. We asked him, if someone proved, as we have done, that his book is in error, would he correct that for the next printing. He said, "No." The Bible has problems, he said. Why should people get bent out of shape if his book has problems too?
How credible, therefore, can we consider the information in The White Lie to be?
By no means, though, is Rea too busy to write any letters whatsoever. He told us that if we sent him a note, he would be happy to send us some material showing how the Bible is wrong. One example he gave us earlier in this conversation was how, in his opinion,
God never turned Lot's wife into a pillar of salt.
"But what about, 'All Scripture is given by inspiration of God' (2 Tim. 3:16), and, 'Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.' (John 17:17)?" we asked. It mattered not what verse we quoted; his opinion about the Bible stories being wrong remained the same.
If you wonder if we are portraying our conversations with Rea accurately, feel free to talk to him yourself.”
Notice also Dirk Anderson, another avid critic of Ellen White and what he has to say about the inspired Word. Once again, we quote truthorfables.net:Dirk Anderson on the Bible (Please click the link to see the entire article):
[Dirk's "Official Statement":
“I view the Bible as an inspired source of guidance and instruction. I am not a fundamentalist, meaning I do not believe every word in the Bible came directly from the lips of God. I believe that God inspires people to write, but with the exception of the prophets, He does not dictate words to be transcribed. The writings of each Bible author are colored by their own personal experience and perspective on life. It is a fact that many of the authors of the Bible never claimed their writings were inspired, so I will make no higher claims for their writings than the authors themselves made. It is well known that many of the stories are second-hand accounts, sometimes written hundreds or thousands of years after the event. While I have no doubt the events occurred, it is possible that some of the clarity of the story was lost over time. For those Bible authors who claim inspiration, I accept their word and my limited studies in this area support that they are everything they claimed to be. I admit I have not had the opportunity to do an exhaustive study on the veracity of the Bible. Some of our web site readers have asked me to take on that project and I hope to do that some day. Despite what my opponents say, I assure you that I have great confidence in the Bible and it has proven an effective guide and inspiration in my personal life.”]
We recommend our readers to study through the link we have provided above, and see for your self what Dirk Anderson is really saying about the Bible and inspiration. We don't know of any other particular critic of Ellen White who has gone to the extent of uttering statements like Walter Rea, but we see evidence that to attack one (Ellen White) is invariably to attacked the other (Bible). Finally, notice this telling statement of Ellen G. White, "one of the characteristics Ellen G. White identified of those who would attack her, something first written in 1876:
It is Satan's plan to weaken the faith of God's people in the Testimonies. Next follows skepticism in regard to the vital points of our faith, the pillars of our position, then doubt as to the Holy Scriptures, and then the downward march to perdition. When the Testimonies, which were once believed, are doubted and given up, Satan knows the deceived ones will not stop at this; and he redoubles his efforts till he launches them into open rebellion, which becomes incurable and ends in destruction.—Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, p. 211, bold added." (Source: Some of Her Critics Would Eventually Doubt the Bible)
We also recommend Ellen G. White: God’s End Time Messenger , a paper that explains about why and how Ellen White's writings have withstood the tests and the standards of the Word of God, the Bible, our FINAL AUTHORITY.