The Volney Conference

The conference was called to begin on Friday, August 18. Leading workers present were Bates, Chamberlain, Gurney, Edson, and James and Ellen White. A few days later James White reported to their friends:1BIO 140.4

Friday p.m. the brethren came in to our meeting in Volney. There were thirty or forty who met with us. Brother Bates preached the Sabbath to them with strong argument, much boldness and power. My principal message was on Matthew 25:1-11 [the parable of the ten virgins]. The brethren are strong on the Sabbath and the shut door. Almost all confessed that they had gained much strength from the meeting. Ellen had two visions at that meeting. She spoke to them with power to their comfort.—JW to Leonard and Elvira Hastings, August 26, 1848.1BIO 140.5

This important conference was reported by Ellen White in some detail:1BIO 140.6

Our first conference was at Volney in Brother Arnold's barn. There were about thirty-five present, all that could be collected in that part of the State. There were hardly two agreed. Each was strenuous for his views, declaring that they were according to the Bible.1BIO 140.7

All were anxious for an opportunity to advance their sentiments, or to preach to us. They were told that we had not come so great a distance to hear them, but had come to teach them the truth.1BIO 141.1

Brother Arnold held that the thousand years of Revelation 20 were in the past; and that the 144,000 were those raised at Christ's resurrection. And as we had the emblem of our dying Lord before us, and were about to commemorate His sufferings, Brother A. arose and said he had no faith in what we were about to do, that the Sacrament was a continuation of the Passover, to be observed but once a year.—Spiritual Gifts, 2:97.1BIO 141.2

Some of these points of view were in conflict with what had been previously shown to Ellen White in vision. She wrote of her reactions and of subsequent happenings.1BIO 141.3

These strange differences of opinion rolled a heavy weight upon me, especially as Brother A. spoke of the thousand years being in the past. I knew that he was in error, and great grief pressed my spirits, for it seemed to me that God was dishonored. I fainted under the burden. Brethren Bates, Chamberlain, Gurney, Edson, and my husband prayed for me.... I was soon lost to earthly things.1BIO 141.4

My accompanying angel presented before me some of the errors of those present, and also the truth in contrast with their errors. That these discordant views, which they claimed to be according to the Bible, were only according to their opinion of the Bible, and that their errors must be yielded, and they unite upon the third angel's message.—Ibid., 2:98, 99.1BIO 141.5

Ellen White summed up the outcome in two sentences: “Our meeting ended victoriously. Truth gained the victory.”—Ibid., 2:99.1BIO 141.6

But there was more to it than that. To these people with divergent views—people who had not seen Ellen White before—the Lord gave very convincing evidences beyond the fact that she was shown by the angel “the truth in contrast with their errors.” Just a few years later, J. N. Loughborough visited with David Arnold and some others who were present at the conference in 1848, and some interesting sidelights emerged. Loughborough wrote:1BIO 141.7

As the circumstance was related to me, Sister White, while in vision, arose to her feet and took the family Bible upon her left arm, the book being an ordinary-sized one. While holding it thus, her eyes looking upward and in an opposite direction from the Bible, with her right hand she would turn from text to text, placing her finger on the text, and would repeat the same.1BIO 142.1

Brother Ross looked at many of the texts to see if she was repeating the one to which she pointed. He or some of the company looked at them all. In every case she not only repeated the texts to which she pointed, but she did so while her eyes were fastened upward and in an opposite direction from the Bible. It was these scriptures quoted in this wonderful manner which overthrew the false theories of the Sabbathkeepers assembled at Volney, in August, 1848, and caused them to unite upon the truth.—JNL, in The Review and Herald, March 3, 1885.1BIO 142.2

He commented:1BIO 142.3

The tendency of the visions is to accomplish just what Paul said would be the effect of true manifestations of the Spirit of God; viz., to bring the church “in the unity of the faith.” Ephesians 4:12-15. The reason these persons gave up their differences was not simply because Sister White said they must give them up, but because in the same vision they were pointed to plain statements of Scripture that refuted their false theories, and had presented before them in contrast a straight and harmonious track of Bible truth....

This company of Sabbathkeepers in Oswego County after their errors had been thus corrected, and they had become united upon the truth, went forth from that meeting to spread the light to others.— Ibid. 1BIO 142.4