Ellen White’s Early Awareness of Health Principles

As early as 1848 Ellen White was shown the harmful effects of tobacco, tea, and coffee. ^{28The Review and Herald, November 8, 1870.} Some church members were not easily convinced regarding tobacco. In an 1851 letter she responded to the question as to whether she had seen “in vision” that it was wrong to use tobacco: “I have seen in vision that tobacco was a filthy weed, and that it must be laid aside or given up.” She wrote encouraging letters to those who struggled to break the tobacco habit. ^{29Bio., vol. 1, p. 224. Tobacco was tolerated for some time among Sabbath-keeping Adventists. The church paper published various articles with both scientific and scriptural arguments against tobacco in the 1850s. The first disfellowshipping of tobacco users occurred in Morristown, Vermont, in 1855.—Robinson, Our Health Message, pp. 66-70.}MOL 280.5

But diet was another matter for the Whites. Many lifestyle changes had already been made within a few short years. The introduction of further change, such as self-denial in dietary habits, would have been enormously distracting and a source of much division among these early Sabbath keeping church members. Achieving doctrinal unity was more important for early Sabbatarian Adventists. Such unity established the spiritual climate for the more personal tests that would be introduced later. ^{30James White wrote in 1857: “In those days [referring to the late 1840s and early 1850s] there were trials, and these trials generally arose in consequence of a disposition to draw off from the great truths connected with the Third Message, to points of no vital importance. It has been impossible to make some see that present truth is present truth, and not future truth, and that the Word as a lamp shines brightly where we stand, and not so plainly on the path in the distance.” The Review and Herald, December 31, 1857.}MOL 280.6

The issue of eating swine’s flesh is a good example of an important Biblical concept that had to wait until a church was ready for its significance. Some had contended as early as 1850 that the Bible definitely forbids eating swine’s flesh, but James White thought that some of the Biblical reasoning was inappropriate: “We do object to a misapplication of the Holy Scriptures in sustaining a position which will only distract the flock of God, and lead the minds of the brethren from the importance of the present work of God among the remnant.” ^{31The Present Truth, November 1850.}MOL 281.1

By 1858 the issue was being zealously pushed by the Haskells, to whom Ellen White wrote this interesting counsel: “I saw that your views concerning swine’s flesh would prove no injury if you have them to yourselves; but in your judgment and opinion you have made this question a test, and your actions have plainly shown your faith in this matter.... If it is the duty of the church to abstain from swine’s flesh, God will discover it to more than two or three. He will teach His church their duty.... I saw that the angels of God would lead His people no faster than they could receive and act upon the important truths that are communicated to them.” ^{32Testimonies for the Church 1:206, 207. See p. 34.}MOL 281.2

The Whites were not ready to take positions unless they had the clearest Biblical evidence or a clear word from the Lord through a vision. Up to the health vision of June 6, 1863, they believed that the dietary restrictions set forth in Leviticus 11 as part of the Jewish ceremonial laws, were no longer applicable since the Cross. During the 1850s, Adventists freely ate pork. After the June 6 vision, the issue of eating swine’s flesh was settled among Seventh-day Adventists. Why? Ellen White now wrote with vision-certainty: “God never designed the swine to be eaten under any circumstances.... The eating of pork has produced scrofula [derived from the Latin word for a breeding sow, a term for tuberculosis of the lymph nodes], leprosy, and cancerous humors [blood or lymph fluids]. Pork-eating is still causing the most intense suffering to the human race.” ^{33Spiritual Gifts 4a:124, 146.}MOL 281.3

Ellen White had been suggesting for a decade other aspects of healthful living that cut across the general habits of almost everyone. In 1854, at a time when modern conveniences were not even thought of, she called for cleanliness among those professing Christianity: “I saw that the houses of the saints should be kept tidy and neat, free from dirt and filth and all uncleanness.” Turning to maintaining health, especially in dietary matters, she wrote that we must “take special care of the health that God has given us.... Deny the unhealthy appetite, eat less fine food, eat coarse food free from grease. Then as you sit at the table to eat you can from the heart ask God’s blessing upon the food and can derive strength from coarse, wholesome food.” ^{34Manuscript 3, 1854, cited in Selected Messages 3:274. Careful examination of Ellen White’s writings indicates that by “grease” she meant animal fat, such as lard and suet, very common cooking ingredients in her day. “Coarse” was a word that could have at least two meanings, such as “coarse” in a healthy sense (unrefined bread) and “coarse” in an unfavorable sense (certain vegetables not properly cooked).—Education, 204.}MOL 281.4