Theological themes in Ellen White’s writings

Ellen White never claimed to be a theologian, nor was she trained in biblical studies; but her writings present many theological themes and ideas, which expand on the biblical stories. Herbert Douglass has commented correctly that “the uniqueness of Ellen White’s contribution lies not in total originality of thought but in her synthesis of divinely revealed insights and the results of her own reading and observation” ^{16Herbert Douglass, Messenger of the Lord: The Prophetic Ministry of Ellen G. White (Nampa, ID: Pacific Press®, 1998), 256.}UEGW 114.1

As John Calvin’s theology is centered around the organizing principle of the sovereignty of God, so Ellen White’s theological themes integrate various strands of her thought into a unified network of concepts and provide an inter-pretative framework for not only single documents or books, but for entire sec-tors of her writings (such as health, education, family living). ^{17George R. Knight, Meeting Ellen White: A Fresh Look at Her Life, Writings, and Major Themes (Hagerstown, MD: Review and Herald®, 1996), 109.} George Knight has identified seven of those themes in her writings: the love of God; the great controversy between good and evil; Jesus, the cross, and salvation; the centrality of the Bible; the second coming of Jesus; the third angel’s message and Adventist mission; and practical Christianity and character development. ^{18Ibid., 109-127. These themes are developed in some significant chapters of Ellen White’s books. The theme of the love of God is developed in the first chapter of Steps to Christ, “God’s Love for Man” (9-15), and in “God With Us” in The Desire of Ages (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press®, 1940), 19-26. Four crucial chapters expound on the theme of the great controversy: “Why Was Sin Permitted?” in Patriarchs and Prophets (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press®, 1958), 33-43; “God With Us” and “It Is Finished” in The Desire of Ages (19-26; 758-764); and “The Origin of Evil” in The Great Controversy, 492-504. The theme of Jesus, the Cross, and salvation is well developed in a number of chapters, among them: “The Plan of Redemption” in Patriarchs and Prophets (63-70); “Gethsemane” and “It Is Finished” in The Desire of Ages (685-697; 758-764); “The Sufferings of Christ” in Testimonies for the Church (vol. 2, 200-215); and in “Ellen White Clarifies the Issues” in EGW, Faith and Works (Nashville, TN: Southern Publishing, 1979), 15-28. The theme of the centrality of the Bible is well presented in “The Scriptures a Safeguard” in The Great Controversy (593-602). The second advent of Christ is described beautifully in “God’s People Delivered” in The Great Controversy (635-652). A large section of The Great Controversy explains Ellen White’s understanding of the three angels’ messages and their impact on Adventist identity and mission (317-460). Various aspects of practical Christianity and character development are found in many of Ellen White’s books, among them are Education (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press®, 1903), 225-271, and in the 1881 series of Review and Herald articles published in the little book, The Sanctified Life (Washington DC: Review and Herald®, 1965).}UEGW 114.2

Illustrative of how Ellen White understood the theological articulation of Bible doctrines are the following three statements highlighting two major themes.UEGW 114.3