Moved by the Holy Spirit

“In some cases where a historian has so grouped together events as to afford, in brief, a comprehensive view of the subject, or has summarized details in a convenient manner, his words have been quoted; but except in a few instances no specific credit has been given, since they are not quoted for the purpose of citing that writer as authority, but because his statement affords a ready and forcible presentation of the subject.”[1] In these words, written in May 1888, Ellen G. White (1827-1915) explains her use of literary sources.

Misunderstanding the Nature of Inspiration

Several months earlier the bitterest public attack against Ellen White came from a former Seventh-day Adventist minister, Dudley M. Canright (1840-1919). Assuming that “the very words in which her visions are recorded are of divine inspiration,” Canright unleashed his attack against her use of literary sources: “She often copies, without credit or sign of quotation, whole sentences, paragraphs and even pages, word for word, from other authors. . . . She gives no credit to these authors but claims it all as a revelation from God! She is a literary thief.”[2]

Canright’s attack exposes an underlying issue: If Ellen White is inspired, why does she need sources? Because inspiration concerns the manner in which divine revelation is communicated––whether orally or in writing––some assume that recognition of the prophetic gift necessarily implies verbal inerrancy. Such a view excludes any revisions and the use of literary sources. This perspective, usually called “verbal inspiration,” ranges from something similar to dictation to a divinely ordained verbal control.[3]

Such a view, however, is not warranted by the biblical data. A few examples suffice. In the Old Testament 1 and 2 Chronicles repeat much of the information found in 1 and 2 Kings, but with different theological emphases. Ezra 5-7 explicitly cites historical documents. In the New Testament Luke indicates that he wrote his Gospel on the basis of testimony from “eyewitnesses and ministers of the word” (Luke 1:2), indicating the use of sources. Paul cited pagan authors such as Aratus (Acts 17:28), Menander (1 Cor. 15:33), and Epimenides (Titus 1:12). These examples illustrate that inspiration is more dynamic than mere verbal dictation, as biblical writers conveyed divine truth while “moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:21), often through the responsible use of existing sources. Originality, therefore, is not a test of inspiration.

Why Ellen White Used Sources

As a postcanonical prophet, Ellen White was no exception. Although she had limited formal education, she was an avid reader, and she used a wide range of sources to communicate revelations often received in broad, panoramic images, through the best human language available. For this purpose, she employed literary sources more than some later readers have found comfortable. In personal diaries, testimonies, devotional writings, historical narratives, theological reflections, educational materials, sermons, health publications, and even in the narration of visionary experiences, she made selective use of prior wording, structure, or ideas.[4] Her use of sources was intentional and consistent with the fair-use conventions of her epoch.[5] At times, expressions that impressed her were absorbed into her vocabulary and later used in her sermons and published writings.[6]

There was no concealing of the literary borrowing. Many of the works she used were familiar to Adventist readers and were even promoted in church publications. Two of her closest collaborators––her son William C. White and her secretary Dores E. Robinson––noted that she selected statements “that exactly suited her purpose.”[7] One major reason for her reliance on sources was her continual sense of literary inadequacy. As she noted in one of her diary entries: “I am not a scholar. I cannot prepare my own writings for the press.”[8]

Following His example, and endowed with the prophetic gift, she understood it as her duty to present truth faithfully.

James White served for many years as her primary editor, but during the final decade of his life, he struggled with serious health problems. She was therefore deeply grateful when Mary Ann (“Marian”) Davis (1847-1904), her most trusted literary assistant, began working for her in 1879.[9] She described Marian’s role as follows: “She takes my articles, which are published in the papers, and pastes them in blank books. She also has a copy of all the letters I write. In preparing a chapter for a book, Marian remembers that I have written something on that special point which may make the matter more forcible. She begins to search for this, and if, when she finds it, she sees that it will make the chapter more clear, she adds it. The books are not Marian’s productions, but my own, gathered from all my writings.”[10]

How Her Writings Were Shaped

Many of Ellen White’s published works were constructed around a revelational core, expressed in her own distinctive style, a style that incorporated carefully chosen linguistic and conceptual elements from other authors alongside her own expressions. Where handwritten originals survive, the material stands closer to the source; the final published texts, reflecting editorial shaping by literary assistants, represent a further stage removed from the original draft.[11]

One illustrative example concerns her treatment of the prehuman angelic fall. After receiving the Great Controversy vision on March 14, 1858, at Lovett’s Grove (present-day Bowling Green), Ohio, Ellen White initially described this episode in the first chapter of Spiritual Gifts, volume 1, without recourse to external sources. Later, when she expanded the same material into the opening chapter of The Spirit of Prophecy, volume 1, she selectively and critically drew upon John Milton’s Paradise Lost to amplify the narrative.[12] This material was subsequently further refined for Patriarchs and Prophets.

A similar pattern appears in her health writings. These contain a revelational core grounded in four major visions (1848, 1854, 1863, and 1865), combined with significant principles drawn from contemporary health literature. Because she lacked formal medical training, her ability to extract sound health principles (the what) reflects an inspired integration of sources, even when the physiological explanations (the why) were acquired through study.[13]

Ellen White carefully reviewed both her own manuscripts and the editorial revisions supplied by her assistants. These assistants were not permitted to insert ideas foreign to her thought, as Frances (“Fannie”) Bolton at one point attempted to do.[14] Ellen White also consented in 1883 to revise previously published Testimonies to correct surface-level grammatical issues.[15] Likewise, when the typeset plates for the 1888 Great Controversy were reset, she approved the 1911 refinement of the text, which included fuller historical source acknowledgments and the correction of factual inaccuracies.

All Truth Belongs to God

For Ellen White, as for many of her contemporaries, all truth was ultimately God’s truth. Christ was the source of all truth, coming to sweep away error and restore what had been lost.[16] Following His example, and endowed with the prophetic gift, she understood it as her duty to present truth faithfully—even when that involved drawing upon “a ready and forcible presentation of the subject” found in existing literature. This too was part of being “moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:21).

[1] Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy Between Christ and Satan During the Christian Dispensation, rev. and enl. (Battle Creek, Mich.: Review and Herald Pub. Assn.; Oakland, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1888), p. h.

[2] Dudley M. Canright, Seventh-day Adventism Renounced, After an Experience of Twenty-Eight Years by a Prominent Minister and Writer of That Faith (Kalamazoo, Mich.: Kalamazoo Pub. Co., 1887), p. 44. Canright’s first published criticism appeared on October 8, 1887, in the Michigan Christian Advocate. See also Tim Poirier, “Ellen White and Sources: The Plagiarism Debate,” in Understanding Ellen White: The Life and Work of the Most Influential Voice in Adventist History, ed. Merlin D. Burt (Nampa, Idaho: Pacific Press Pub. Assn.; Silver Spring, Md.: Ellen G. White Estate, 2015), pp. 145, 146.

[3] Merlin D. Burt, “Revelation and Inspiration: Ellen White’s Understanding,” in Burt, pp. 33, 34.

[4] Warren H. Johns, “Ellen White: Prophet or Plagiarist?” Ministry, June 1982, p. 16; see also Poirier, in Burt, pp. 153, 154.

[5] Jerry Moon, “Who Owns the Truth? Another Look at the Plagiarism Debate,” Ellen White and Current Issues Symposium 1 (2005): 49.

[6] Robert W. Olson, “Ellen G. White’s Use of Uninspired Sources” (1980), p. 12.

[7] W. C. White and D. E. Robinson, “Brief Statements Regarding the Writings of Ellen G. White” (“Elmshaven” Office, St. Helena, Calif., 1933), p. 10.

[8] Ellen G. White manuscript 3, 1873, diary entry for Friday, Jan. 10, 1873; see also Ellen G. White, Selected Messages (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Pub. Assn., 1958, 1980), book 3, pp. 89, 90.

[9] Kevin L. Morgan, “Davis, Mary Ann ‘Marian’ (1847-1904),” Encyclopedia of Seventh-day Adventists, Jan. 28, 2020.

[10] Ellen G. White letter 61a, 1900, to George A. Irwin, Apr. 23, 1900.

[11] Ron Graybill, “E. G. White’s Literary Work: An Update,” edited and annotated transcript of presentations given at the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, Nov. 15-19, 1981, p. 4.

[12] Dan-Adrian Petre, “Ellen White’s Prehuman, Angelic Fall, and John Milton’s Paradise Lost: A Comparison,” paper presented at the Ellen White Issues Symposium, Mar. 31, 2025, p. 27.

[13] Don S. McMahon, Acquired or Inspired? Exploring the Origins of the Adventist Lifestyle (Victoria, Australia: Signs Pub. Co., 2005), pp. 139-142.

[14] E. G. White letter 61a, 1900; see also “The Fannie Bolton Story: A Collection of Source Documents” (1982).

[15] Arthur L. White, Ellen G. White: Messenger to the Remnant, rev. ed. (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Pub. Assn., 1969), p. 65.

[16] Ellen G. White, “Christ Revealed the Father,” Review and Herald, Jan. 7, 1890, p. 1.