In your opinion, what is important for Adventists about this composite biography? One thing that has been very striking to me as I worked on this project is how many Seventh-day Adventist institutions Ellen White shaped and how the very way the church functions today is still based on priorities she set. For example, Adventist education at all levels–primary, secondary, and tertiary–owes its existence to the writing, speaking, general priorities, forethought, activism, and visions of White. The same is true of Adventist healthcare institutions, worldwide church organization, and international publishing systems. She was tremendously influential over the 70 years of her public ministry but has been equally important over the century since she died. While this may seem obvious, it is something Adventism needs to note and remember. To really appreciate her legacy, I have found it helpful to understand her life and times much more thoroughly. Also, while Adventists who read this book will understandably measure it with their own previous experience and knowledge of Ellen White, they need to keep in mind the primary audience for this book, which includes academic historians and students who have no previous knowledge of White. How will this target audience respond to the story of her life? When we met in Portland, Maine, At various times in her life, Ellen White I wondered about that question as we was credentialed as brought together a group of people who a Seventh-day deeply understood White and a group Adventist minister of people for whom her name had no by both local confercontext and no particular significance. I ences and the General Conference. wondered what they would think of her,
what they would take away from this first encounter. I did not know what to expect. As the conference ended, I was impressed with the level of interest and seriousness these scholars applied to learning what in many cases was entirely new information. Their level of engagement with her, respect for her story, and enthusiasm for supporting further research, made the effort—and bouts of trepidation— worthwhile. As I’ve described here, I did not know what to expect from scholars who have not encountered Ellen White before. I also wondered how Adventists would receive the results of our work. Anyone looking for a book that exactly matches their own perspective will be disappointed, because this composite biography includes many perspectives. A majority of the chapter authors are Adventist historians who teach at Adventist schools or have recently retired from a career in Adventist higher education. A smaller number of authors are former Adventists, and an even smaller number are those who have never had any connection to Adventist tradition. Knowing full well the risks inherent in putting together so many perspectives, we proceeded with the task, because we wanted to do something different, something other than Adventists talking—sometimes not very civilly—only to one another. My hope is that our work will be received as respectfully by Adventists of all persuasions as it was by the conference participants who had never heard of her before. As you’ve been working with these scholars, you have also been working on a biography of White. Tell me how your biography project compares with the Oxford book. The biography I am writing is different in purpose. It is the first Ellen White biography written by a woman. George Knight’s Adventist Pioneers biography series (of which my volume is a part) is intended primarily for a college-educated, Seventh-day Adventist audience (the Oxford book is designed to be accessible to this group, but it is directed primarily to an academic audience of no particular religious orientation). Another contrast is that the Oxford book is written by multiple authors who follow specific themes; the biography will have just one voice. It is also designed to provide a narrative overview of her entire life–though built on a foundation of careful research, it isn’t written as an academic book. One of my challenges is to make the book as inclusive as possible, though I realize scholars have spent their entire careers studying her life, and a thorough examination of her requires multiple volumes. I hope the Oxford book piques the interest of readers in Ellen White, and they will read my biography as well as other volumes currently in the works. I am certain that over the next few decades many more academic researchers will produce works on someone as noteworthy as Ellen Harmon White. I am glad that Seventh-day Adventist scholars and researchers have been involved in this early contribution to what we expect will become an ongoing discussion among academic historians. The fact that Oxford University Press has chosen to publish and distribute “Ellen Harmon White: American Prophet” is an honor. Julie Lenée Scott holds a master’s in journalism from University of Oregon, an MBA from University of Rochester, and a PhD from University of Washington. She runs a leadership development consultancy in the Northwest.
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Westwind Fall 2013
Fritz Guy Research Professor of Philosophical Theology, La Sierra University “Theology” Bert Haloviak Former director of the office of archives and statistics, the Adventist World Headquarters (now retired) “Practical Theology” Ronald L. Numbers (co-author) Hilldale Professor Emeritus of the History of Science and Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison “Science and Medicine” Rennie B. Schoepflin (co-author) Associate dean and professor of history, College of Natural and Social Sciences, California State University, Los Angeles “Science and Medicine” Douglas Morgan Professor of history and political studies, Washington Adventist University “Society” Benjamin McArthur Professor of history, Southern Adventist University “Culture” Eric Anderson President, Southwestern Adventist University “Race” Laura Vance Director of gender and women’s studies program, Warren Wilson College “Gender” T. Joe Willey Independent scholar, Ph.D. University of California, Berkeley “Death and Burial” Paul McGraw (co-author) Professor of history, Pacific Union College “Legacy” Gilbert Valentine (co-author) Professor, chair of educational leadership. La Sierra University “Legacy” Gary Land Emeritus professor of history, Andrews University “Biographies”
ELLEN WHITE ESTATE,INC.
research on the “Testimonies.” Here we include some of his work that is being developed for his doctoral dissertation at the University of Chicago. He is painstakingly going through specific testimony messages that can be traced back to the original recipients and communities. Then he provides context for the advice White has penned. One thing that really strikes me as I read his work is how intuitive and gifted White was as she worked to influence people and bring about harmony among disparate factions. It leaves a very different, and more nuanced, impression than her sometimes-very-directive messages to anonymous recipients that we see in print.
Jerry Moon (co-author) Professor, chair of church history, Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary, Andrews University “Builder”