Ellen White's World: A Fascinating Look at the Times in Which She Lived

by George R. Knight

Ellen White's writings are important, but they are only part of the story. The other part is the social and intellectual context in which she wrote. What was her world like? What problems did it face? What ideas were in vogue? What religious movements did she interact with? How did her ideas relate to the sentiments of other reformers of her day?

These and other questions stand at the heart of George R. Knight's third volume in his series on Ellen White. The genius of Ellen White's World is that it combines photographs with verbal descriptions to make Ellen White's world come alive for the modern reader.

The first section of this helpful volume concisely presents the world of Ellen White prior to the American Civil War, while the second section examines her world after that climactic event. An understanding of those two very distinct contexts is essential for the fullest understanding of Ellen White's counsel to the church.

Genres: History

Paperback

First published September 1, 1998

Reviews

[Jenna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting how a simple woman who loved the Bible, creates a large following. Even though she never endorsed her writing as scripture, but said to let the Bible do the talking! Yet over time ones who kept the movement going, they incorporated her writings into their doctrine according to her son!

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good - but quite short and therefore somewhat superficial.

[Broheros · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lowered this to 3.0 stars, me and a friend were talking about how Knight doesn’t cite ANY of the historical events he talks about. Considering how broad this book is and how many topics it handled, that’s… an interesting choice, to say the least.

Ellen White’s World was an enjoyable read. Giving context for the time White lived in, I now better understand why she had some of the views she did- most lined up with the progressive health, social justice, and reformation movements of the time. Knight has easy-to-read prose, and while the book is short and fast-paced, I felt all the topics covered were heavily researched. I did have to read this for school, and probably wouldn't have read this on my own, but I'm glad I did!

[Edith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a terrific book that was required reading for our Adventist History and Mission course. Anything written by George R. Knight, a current Adventist history scholar, is extremely readable.

This book painted a vivid picture of the 1800‘s and in particular, the time period when Adventism became a movement. Knight begins early on with the Second Great Awakening, a religious revival lasting from roughly 1790 to 1840 which “did more than anything else to make America into a Christian nation.” Outdoor camp meetings, strong sermons from fire and brimstone preachers, etc...and a “mission” consciousness. “One of the nineteenth century’s most powerful ideas was that human effort could bring about the millennial kingdom.” This human effort led to an era of reform...health (sanitation, diet), education (Louisa May Alcott’s father was an innovator at this time), the Prohibition Movement was big, and the anti-slavery movement became intense in the North culminating in the Civil War.

Into this vibrant setting when America was rearranging itself and making big changes, a Baptist named William Miller began reading the Bible and interpreting scripture which he felt pointed to the imminent return of Jesus. He and his followers went so far as to set a date- October 22, 1844. This led to the Great Disappointment when the great day came and Christ had not come. Ellen White was 12 years old when this was happening and “for the rest of her long life she lived with the doctrine of the nearness of the Second Advent at the center of her belief system.”

Adventism, as it is today, is an offshoot of this Millerite Movement. These Christian believers soon relinquished date-setting efforts and took on Sabbath observance as necessary in order for Christ to return. Adventists were an energetic people who threw their backs into their work and sought to change/evangelize the world in order to hasten the return of the Messiah.

This religion history course was absolutely fascinating to me. I learned SO MUCH...necessarily because I started out knowing virtually nothing about the subject! I came away with an immense respect for the Adventists and for Ellen White herself. They are an indefatigable people. This group of Christian believers. who had their humble beginnings in the mid-1800s, now number 16 million members worldwide, with only 7% of the membership in North America. It is truly a global church.