Criticism of the Seventh-day Adventist Church

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This article is about criticism of the movement. For the main article, see Seventh-day Adventist Church.

A number of groups and persons have voiced criticisms of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, some of which are summarized below.

1 Early Shut door theology
2 Ellen G. White
3 Church doctrine
4 Cult status
5 References
6 See also
7 External links

[edit] Early Shut door theology

Eugene Taylor and others have criticised the church over its shut door theology ^[1]^[2]^[3]^[4]^[5] Ellen White wrote in defense of the shut door belief,

"I am still a believer in the shut-door theory, but not in the sense in which we at first employed the term or in which it is employed by my opponents.

"I was shown in vision, and I still believe, that there was a shut door in 1844. All who saw the light of the first and second angels' messages and rejected that light, were left in darkness. And those who accepted it and received the Holy Spirit which attended the proclamation of the message from heaven, and who afterward renounced their faith and pronounced their experience a delusion, thereby rejected the Spirit of God, and it no longer pleaded with them. Those who did not see the light, had not the guilt of its rejection. It was only the class who had despised the light from heaven that the spirit of God could not reach."^[6]

In the aftermath of the Great Disappointment in 1844 there were two groups of Adventists: “open door” Adventists and “shut door” Adventists.^[7] The shut door Adventists concluded that they had completed their mission to humanity, that Christ's Second Coming was very near and that their only duty was to encourage and instruct other Adventists who had believed prior to in the Millerite movement.^[8] The "shut door" doctrine, based on the Parable of the Ten Virgins, asserted that those not saved at the judgment hour (1844-10-22) were unable to attain salvation.^[9] Adventists teach that believing in a shut door was a very reasonable conclusion at the time. Ellen White explains:

After the passing of the time of expectation, in 1844, Adventists still believed the Saviour's coming to be very near; they held that they had reached an important crisis, and that the work of Christ as man's intercessor before God, had ceased. Having given the warning of the Judgment near, they felt that their work for the world was done, and they lost their burden of soul for the salvation of sinners, while the bold and blasphemous scoffing of the ungodly seemed to them another evidence that the Spirit of God had been withdrawn from the rejecters of his mercy. All this confirmed them in the belief that probation had ended, or, as they then expressed it, "the door of mercy was shut." ^[10]

Today, Seventh-day Adventists consider the Millerite Movement, their prophesying the end of the world, believing that the end of all things had actually come, and eventual disappointment, to be a fulfillment of Revelation 10. [1]

[edit] Ellen G. White

The Seventh-day Adventist Church considers the ministry and writings of Ellen G. White as manifesting the gift of prophecy, as evidenced in fundamental belief 18.^[11] The role of Ellen White as a prophet has been criticized on two main fronts, her health and her uncredited reliance on numerous literary sources. These accusations have resulted in questions about her legitimacy as a true prophet.

[edit] Health

At the age of nine, White sustained a blow to the head from a rock thrown at her.^[12] It is frequently interpreted from various speculations on the incident that Ellen White spent three weeks in a coma and that a brain trauma might explain her visions.^[13] Individuals with epilepsy have also been found to have delusions and hallucinations in relationship to God.^[14]^[15] Abnormalities in the hippocampus are associated with religiosity in refractory epileptic patients similar to Ellen G.White.^[16]^[17]^[18]

Donald I. Peterson, Professor of Neurology at the Adventist Loma Linda University School of Medicine and Chief of Neurology at Riverside General Hospital, California, disagrees and explains the difference between "stupor" and "coma."^[19] Adventists Desmond and Gillian Ford also disagree with the critics of Ellen White, writing:

We personally do not believe that the epilepsy theory of "partial-complex seizures" is an adequate explanation for the phenomenon of Ellen G. White. Such seizures typically are common within a few months of the cause of the injury, not eight years after. If disease could provide the dedication, energy and wisdom that Ellen White revealed for over seventy years, some of us would pray "Lord, give me that disease".^[20]

[edit] Plagiarism

A common criticism of Ellen White is that she took uncredited material from contemporary authors. ^[21]^[22]^[23]

The Seventh-day Adventist Church believes that White's use of sources was typical for a nineteenth-century writer and that her use of other authors was limited. When the plagiarism charge ignited a significant debate within the Adventist church during the late 1970s and early 1980s, the General Conference commissioned a major study. In 1982, Fred Veltman, then chairman of the religion department of Pacific Union College, was asked to analyze the charges of plagiarism brought by Walter Rea and others against Ellen White. Veltman focussed specifically on White's book The Desire of Ages and the ensuing project became known as the "'Life of Christ' Research Project." The results are available at the General Conference Archives web site. An abreviated summary of Veltman's findings were printed in the October and December 1990 editions of Ministry (a monthly periodical for Seventh-day Adventist clergy). ^[24] Other Seventh-day Adventist replies to these charges include: Dr. Roger W. Coon^[25], David J. Conklin^[26], Dr. Denis Fortin^[27]^[28] ^[29]^[30] Don McMahon asserts that health principles espoused by White were accurate.^[31]

See also: Ellen G. White, and more specifically, prophetic gift of Ellen White.

[edit] Status of Ellen White

The Adventist church has also been criticized for unduly elevating the status of Ellen White. Many Adventist scholars such as Alden Thompson, Clifford Goldstein and Graeme Bradford agree that unrealistically high views of Ellen White have been held in the church, particularly in the past. Graeme Bradford in his book Prophets are Human highlights that fact that Ellen White participated and was involved in many normal human activities.^[32]

[edit] Church doctrine

[edit] Hell

Traditional Christianity teaches that, for the sins of a brief earthly life, the wicked dead are tormented with fire and brimstone in an eternally burning hell and will continue to suffer this torture for all eternity^[33], although this is in dispute among evangelicals currently.^[34] This doctrine relies on literal interpretations of many verses of the Bible (Revelation 20:10, Jude 1:7, Luke 16:19-31, Isaiah 66:24, Isaiah 14:3-11) and other seemingly contrary verses in a symbolic or abstract sense (2 Thessalonians 1:9, Matthew 10:28, Ezekiel 18:20, Ecclesiastes 9:5-6, Ecclesiastes 9:10, Daniel 12:2, John 5:28-29, John 11:12-14, Psalms 115:17, Psalms 49:12, Isaiah 33:14-15, Malachi 4:1, Malachi 4:3). Seventh-day Adventists interpret the meaning of the original language used in the verses above to mean that there is no eternal conscious torment.^[35] There are Bible scholars from different faiths that perceive the Adventist viewpoint to be very compelling and biblical.^[34]

[edit] Anti-catholicism

Some writings of Ellen White appear to be anti-Catholic in tone, ascribing a generally conspiratorial nature to the Roman Catholic Church in preparation for a nefarious eschatological role as the antagonist of God's true remnant.

Ellen White writes,

God’s word has given warning of the impending danger; let this be unheeded, and the Protestant world will learn what the purposes of Rome really are, only when it is too late to escape the snare. She is silently growing into power. Her doctrines are exerting their influence in legislative halls, in the churches, and in the hearts of men. She is piling up her lofty and massive structures, in the secret recesses of which her former persecutions will be repeated. Stealthily and unsuspectingly she is strengthening her forces to further her own ends when the time shall come for her to strike.^[36]

In their defense Adventists maintain that their views regarding eschatology are anti-papal but not necessarily anti-Catholic.^[37] John F. MacArthur is one noted evangelical whose strong messages against Catholicism agree exactly with what Seventh-day Adventists teach.^{[citation needed]} The Seventh-day Adventist Church, in short, claims to be one of the last bastions of historicism and orthodoxy in the mainstream Protestant sect of Christianity.

Catholics, on the other hand, while accepting the validity of Adventist baptism (in view of their Trinitatian confession), take offense to frequent reference to the Protestant Reformers and to Protestant historians by Adventist evangelists. The insular attitude characteristic of Adventists contacts with other Christian groups is especially manifest in their approach to Catholicism, which they identifiy as the Antichrist power of Bible prophecy in public seminars. Popular suspicion of Catholic intentions (reflecting the anti-Catholic tone of late 19th Century political tracts) preclude most forms of dialogue. Thoughtful engagement of Catholic theology is also limited; by portraying the Catholic Church as a persecutory power, Adventists ignore the recent teachings of Vatican II which defend religious liberty as an eternal moral principle.^[38]

[edit] Christology

It has been alleged by the Christian Research Institute that traditional Adventism teaches that Christ had a sinful nature (Christian Research Journal, Summer 1988, p. 13). This is in opposition to the position given by commentators on Christology, a field which studies the divine/human nature of the biblical Christ.

Ellen White wrote: “Christ took upon His sinless nature our sinful nature...; Christ took human nature and bore the infirmities and degeneracy of the race. He took our nature and its deteriorating condition” ^[39]. It is also acknowledged by the CRI that there is significant disagreement in the Adventist Church as to what Ellen White meant by her statement. Many Christian faiths teach that Christ “was tempted in every way, just as we are” Hebrews 4:15, that he appeared on earth “in the likeness of sinful flesh” Romans 8:3 and that to some degree Christ “had to be made like His brethren in all things” Hebrews 2:17. However, there are no instances in Ellen White's writings where Christ is represented as being tempted by carnal desires, instead being countered by quotes such as "holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners" Hebrews 7:26.

[edit] Investigative judgment and salvation

The Investigative Judgment doctrine is defined in the Church's list of fundamental beliefs.^[11]

In reviewing this uniquely Seventh-day Adventist doctrine, authors deny that it has any biblical basis,^[40]^[41] particularly its claim that Christ did not enter the "holy of holies" until 1844, despite verses such as Hebrews 9:25-26, and Hebrews 10:11-14, among others, which reference the work of Christ having been completed at the cross.^[42]^[43]^[44]

Adventists answer that Investigative Judgment doctrine isn't about celestial geography, that Lordship salvation is compatible with the gospel, and that Scriptures like 1 Peter 4:17 and Matthew 25 teach an endtime judgment of the Church. Equally certain is that the endtime gospel of Revelation 14:6-12 did not sound in the first century but applies to our time.

The essence of Old Testament sanctuary typology that Adventists rely on for their eschatology and may be summarized as follows:

The sanctuary services emphasized three aspects of Christ’s work for us: sacrifice, mediation, and judgment. In general, the three parts of the sanctuary corresponded to these three kinds of ministry. Sacrifice occurred in the court, mediation in the holy place, and judgment in the Most Holy Place.^[45]

As to the 1844 date, Walter Martin wrote:

Lest anyone reading the various accounts of the rise of "Millerism" in the United States come to the conclusion that Miller and his followers were "crackpots" or "uneducated tools of Satan," the following facts should be known: The Great Advent Awakening movement that spanned the Atlantic from Europe was bolstered by a tremendous wave of contemporary biblical scholarship. Although Miller himself lacked academic theological training, actually scores of prophetic scholars in Europe and the United States had espoused Miller's views before he himself announced them. In reality, his was only one more voice proclaiming the 1843/1844 fulfillment of Daniel 8:14, or the 2300-day period allegedly dating from 457 B.C. and ending in A.D. 1843-1844.^[46]

[edit] Remnant church status

The Seventh-day Adventist church's 13th fundamental belief describes the remnant church: 13. Remnant and Its Mission: The universal church is composed of all who truly believe in Christ, but in the last days, a time of widespread apostasy, a remnant has been called out to keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. This remnant announces the arrival of the judgment hour, proclaims salvation through Christ, and heralds the approach of His second advent. This proclamation is symbolized by the three angels of Revelation 14; it coincides with the work of judgment in heaven and results in a work of repentance and reform on earth. Every believer is called to have a personal part in this worldwide witness. ^[47]

Both historically and contemporaneously, some Seventh-day Adventists have viewed the Seventh-day Adventist Church as THE remnant church. This is not however official church belief as can be seen from the above quote. Many of the claims made regarding this are made by opponants of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. These include statements like The SDA leadership affirms that they are indeed the remnant church, the true "Israel of God," because they have the mark of the Lord, Saturday worship, and the prophetess to confirm this.^[48]

Similarly, ex-Seventh-day Adventist Tim Sly makes the claim Believe me, it is a big deal to "leave" the SDA church because the members feel that they are the remnant of God, the one true church. ^[49]

The Adventist Theological Society--an unofficial group of Seventh-day Adventists has the following as part of their affirmation which prospective members must sign: I affirm the identification of the Seventh day Adventist Church as the remnant movement called by God to proclaim the three angels' messages of Revelation 14:6 13, which prepare the world for the soon return of Christ. ^[50]

Ron Corson in his article "Progressive and Traditional Adventists Examined" in Adventist Today points out that members of the Seventh-day Adventist Church hold a variety of beliefs on the subject. He sees "Traditional Adventists" as believing that the Seventh-day Adventist Church is the "Remnant"; while "Progressive Adventists" believe in the inclusion of other Christians into the category termed the "Remnant." ^[51]

A comprehensive outline of official Seventh-day Adventist belief on the topic may be found on the webpage of the Biblical Research Institute: ^[52]

[edit] Cult status

Disputes have arisen among counter-cult authors over whether Seventh-day Adventism is a cult.

In the late 1950s, Walter Martin and Donald Barnhouse classified Adventism as non-cult-like^[53] . For Martin, this was a reversal of his earlier 1955 classification of Adventism as a cult. Many evangelicals followed this advice, and continue to do so today, accepting Adventism as an orthodox Christian denomination, even though it holds a few doctrines that are seen as different from mainline Christian churches. This can be viewed as an increasing acceptance of the Adventist church into the Christian fold, since many of these other Christian groups were previously very opposed to Adventist teaching. Although he later reversed this opinion and belief and later expanded his position in his 1960 book-length treatment, The Truth About Seventh-day Adventism.

Others class Adventism as an unorthodox Christian denomination, including, for example, John Whitcomb, Jr.^[54] Allegations of Adventist insularism and warnings about mixing with non-Christians and even non-Adventists, and the importance placed on Adventist education for children are also major allegations of what is colloquially thought of as cult-like behavior. In their defense, Adventists respond that their educational system is designed to instill character and faith in their children; indeed, Adventist schools are open to all.

In describing their opposition to ecumenical changes, some Adventists refer to Ellen White, who wrote that "Babylon is the church, fallen because of her errors and sins, because of her rejection of the truth sent to her from heaven."^[55]

[edit] References

^ Eugene Taylor (2000). Shadow Culture: Psychology and Spirituality in America. Counterpoint Press.
^ Laura L Vance (1999). Seventh-day Adventism in Crisis: Gender and Sectarian Change in an Emerging Religion. University of Illinois Press.
^ Gent, Jack (2001). The Shut Door. Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ The Shut Door. The Ellen White Research Project. Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ Closed Door. about.com (2003-10-01). Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ White, Ellen G. [1958]. Selected Messages, book 1, 63-64.
^ The Shut Door and the Pioneers of Seventh-day Adventism. presenttruthmag.com. Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ Knight, George R. (2001). What is Adventist in Adventism?. A Search for Identity. Adventist Review.
^ White, Ellen G. [1888] (1999). “In the Holy of Holies”, The Great Controversy: Between Christ and Satan. The Ellen G. White Estate, 429-432. ISBN 0-816-31923-5. Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ White, Ellen G. [1884]. Spirit of Prophecy: Volume Four, 268.
^ ^a ^b Fundamental Beliefs. General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ White, Arthur L. (2000). Ellen G. White: A Brief Biography. Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ Gregory Holmes and Delbert Hodder (1981). "Ellen G.White and the Seventh Day Adventist Church: Visions of Partial Complex Seizures?". Journal of Neurology, 31 (4): 160-161.
^ O.Devinsky (2003). "Religious Experience and epilepsy". Epilepsy and Behavior 4 (1): 76-77.
^ A. J. Riggs and J. E. Riggs (2005). "Epilepsy: Role in the differentiation of religion, magic and science". Epilepsia (46): 452-453.
^ F. A. Gibbs (1951). "Ictal and non-ictal psychiatric disorders in temporal lobe epilepsy". Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, (113): 523-527.
^ J. Wuerfel, et. al. (2004). "Religiosity is associated with hippocampal but not amygdala volumes in patients with refractory epilepsy". Journal of Neurology, Neuropsychiatry, and Neurosurgery 75 (4): 640-642.
^ E. L. Altschuler (2002). "Did Ezekiel have temporal lobe epilepsy". Archives of General Psychiatry 59 (6): 561-562.
^ Peterson, Donald I. (1988). Visions or Seizures: Was Ellen White the Victim of Epilepsy?. Boise, Idaho: Pacific Press Publishing. ISBN 0-8163-0795-4. Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ Desmond and Gillian Ford (1982). The Adventist Crisis of Spiritual Identity. Desmond Ford Publications, p. 201.
^ Canright, D. M. (1919). Life of Mrs. E.G. White, Seventh-day Adventist Prophet: Her False Claims Refuted. Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ Walter, Walter T. (February 1983). The White Lie. Moore Publishing. ISBN 0-960-74240-9.
^ Numbers, Ronald L. (1976). Prophetess of health: a study of Ellen G. White. Harper & Row. ISBN 0-060-66325-1.
^ Desire of Ages Veltman Report. Retrieved on 2006-11-13.
^ Ellen G. White as a Writer: Part III - The Issue of Literary Borrowing
^ An Analysis of the Literary Dependency of Ellen White
^ Ellen G. White as a Writer: Case Studies in the Issue of Literary Borrowing
^ The Ellen G. White Encyclopedia
^ Issues & Answers Regarding Inspiration and the Life and Work of Ellen G. White. Retrieved on 2006-05-01.
^ The Truth About The White Lie. Retrieved on 2006-05-03.
^ McMahon, Don (1995). Acquired or inspired: exploring the origins of the Adventist lifestyle. Warburton, Victoria: Signs Publishing Company.
^ Bradford, Graeme (2004). Prophets Are Human. Warburton, Victoria: Signs Publishing Company.
^ Packer, James I. (Spring 1997). "Evangelical Annihilationism in Review". Reformation & Revival Journal 6 (2). Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ ^a ^b (3rd Quarter 2003) "Review: "The Fire that Consumes"". Biblaridion-online.net (3). Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ David Lowe. "The Seventh Day Adventist View of Annihilationism". Retrieved on 2006-06-06.]
^ White, Ellen G. [1888] (1999). “Enmity Between Man and Satan”, The Great Controversy: Between Christ and Satan. The Ellen G. White Estate, 508. ISBN 0-816-31923-5. Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists Administrative Committee (1997-04-17). "How Seventh-day Adventists View Roman Catholicism". Office of the President, Robert S. Folkenberg. Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ "Implications of the Catholic Doctrine of Religious Liberty for the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the 21st Century", Dies Domini, Catholic Adventist Apologetics, 2005-07-03. Retrieved on 2006-07-03.
^ Questions on Doctrine, pp. 654-656
^ Rogol, Edmund. Seventh-day Adventist teachings on the investigative judgement. Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ Oliver, Timothy (1996). "Seventh-day Adventist Church Profile". The Watchman Expositor 13 (1).
^ The 1844 Investigative Judgment Doctrine. MacGregor Ministries. Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ Dirk Anderson; Ernesto Gil. Mrs. White vs. The Bible: The Investigative Judgment. Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ Sanders, Robert K.. The Investigative Judgment Made Simple. Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ Representative SDA (1957). Seventh-day Adventists Answer Questions on Doctrine. Review And Herald Publishing Association, Washington, D.C, chapters 29-36.
^ Walter Martin (1997). The Kingdom of the Cults, Revised, p. 522.
^ Fundamental Beliefs. Retrieved on August 14, 2006.
^ Raptureready.com. Retrieved on August 14, 2006.
^ Tim Sly. Retrieved on August 14, 2006.
^ Affirmation. Retrieved on August 14, 2006.
^ Progressive and Traditional Adventists Examined. Retrieved on August 14, 2006.
^ The remnant and the adventist Church. Retrieved on August 14, 2006.
^ Walter Martin (1985). The Kingdom of the Cults, Revised, Bethany House Publishers.
^ Seventh-Day Adventism: Orthodox or cult?. Biblical Discernment Ministries (November 2001). Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
^ White, Ellen G. [1888] (1999). “The Final Warning”, The Great Controversy: Between Christ and Satan. The Ellen G. White Estate, 607. ISBN 0-816-31923-5. Retrieved on 2006-06-06.