GH, you didn’t give the information Gabriel asked you to provide. Why won’t you back up your claims with evidence? What is the harm in disclosing your conference affiliation and even the name of your church? Shouldn’t church pastors or their spouses be eager to disclose the church and conference where they work? Your unwillingness to do this implies that you have something to hide.
GregOkay. That’s fine with me. I don’t mind you believing that. I think I answered it better than the references given me. But you can believe what you want. If I have no credibility ... fine.
Ok, I’ll give you a more detailed answer in this post regarding references, and I’m expecting in return a better job from you, providing full references regarding yourself, your church, your Conference, in order for us to verify at first hand the claims you made about your Conference, and see if your spouse is allowed to disregard the Church Manual as you pretend..
The first point of Stan was,
The first and most obviously false teaching on health was the area of masturbation. She taught that those who practiced this would become insane or blind and any number of other disorders.
Here are the references for masturbation’s effects on health, bold parts are mine
Children who practice self-indulgence previous to puberty, or the period of merging into manhood or womanhood, must pay the penalty of nature’s violated laws at that critical period. Many sink into an early grave, while others have sufficient force of constitution to pass this ordeal. If the practice is continued from the age of fifteen and upward, nature will protest against the abuse she has suffered, and continues to suffer, and will make them pay the penalty for the transgression of her laws, especially from the ages of thirty to forty-five, by numerous pains in the system, and various diseases, such as affection of the liver and lungs, neuralgia, rheumatism, affection of the spine, diseased kidneys, and cancerous humors. Some of nature’s fine machinery gives way, leaving a heavier task for the remaining to perform, which disorders nature’s fine arrangement, and there is often a sudden breaking down of the constitution; and death is the result. Solem Appeal, page 63
Females possess less vital force than the other sex, and are deprived very much of the bracing, invigorating air, by their in-doors life. The results of self-abuse in them is seen in various diseases, such as catarrh, dropsy, headache, loss of memory and sight, great weakness in the back and loins, affections of the spine, the head often decays inwardly. Cancerous humor, which would lay dormant in the system their life-time, is inflamed, and commences its eating, destructive work. The mind is often utterly ruined, and insanity takes place. Appeal to Mothers, page 27
Can any expect that God will accept a profession, a form, merely, while the heart is withheld, and they refuse to obey his commandments? They sacrifice physical strength and reason upon the altar of lust, and can they think that God will accept their distracted, imbecile service, while they continue their wrong course? Such are just as surely self-murderers as though they pointed a pistol to their own breast, and destroyed their life instantly. In the first case they linger longer, are more debilitated, and destroy gradually the vital force of their constitution, and the mental faculties; yet the work of decay is sure. While they live, they curse the earth with their imbecile influence, are a stumbling-block to sinners, and cause their friends living sorrow, and an immeasurable weight of anxiety and care as they mark the signs of their decay, and have daily evidence of their impaired intellect. Appeal to Mothers, page 25
Stan’s second point was about the use of wine in Ellen White’s writings:
She was sometimes inconsistent with regards to the use of wine. She actually advised a PREGNANT woman to take some wine. But for the most part she spoke of the harmful effects of alcohol. She did say that the Bible no where condoned the use of wine..
Regarding the pregnant woman, here is the reference
Before the birth of his children he did not treat his wife as a woman in her condition should be treated. 2Testimonies, page 378
B has been very deficient. While in her best condition of health, his wife was not provided with a plenty of wholesome food and with proper clothing. Then, when she needed extra clothing and extra food, and that of a simple yet nutritious quality, it was not allowed her. Her system craved material to convert into blood, but he would not provide it. A moderate amount of milk and sugar, and a little salt, white bread raised with yeast for a change, graham flour prepared in a variety of ways by other hands than her own, plain cake with raisins, rice pudding with raisins, prunes, and figs, occasionally, and many other dishes I might mention, would have answered the demand of appetite. If he could not obtain some of these things, a little domestic wine would have done her no injury; it would have been better for her to have it than to do without it. In some cases, even a small amount of the least hurtful meat would do less injury than to suffer strong cravings for it. 2 Testimonies, page 383.
The Bible nowhere sanctions the use of intoxicating wine. The wine that Christ made from water at the marriage feast of Cana was the pure juice of the grape. This is the “new wine . . . found in the cluster,” of which the Scripture says, “Destroy it not; for a blessing is in it.” Isaiah 65:8. Ministry of Healing, page 333
Another of Stan’s points:
Ellen White also taught total abstinence from tea and coffee, even pronouncing that partaking of these beverages was a sin
Tea and coffee drinking is a sin, an injurious indulgence, which, like other evils, injures the soul. These darling idols create an excitement, a morbid action of the nervous system; and after the immediate influence of the stimulants is gone, it lets down below par just to that degree that its stimulating properties elevated above par. Counsels of Diets and Foods, page 425
The next point made by Stan
Ellen White also taught that meat eating was harmful and stimulated the “animal propensities”, and equated abstaining from meat with being more spiritual.
Meat eating stimulates animal propensities:
We should not make it a practice to place upon our tables food which would injure the health of our children. Our food should be prepared free from spices. Mince pies, cakes, preserves, and highly-seasoned meats, with gravies, create a feverish condition in the system, and inflame the animal passions. We should teach our children to practice habits of self-denial, that the great battle of life is with self, to restrain the passions, and bring them into subjection to the mental and moral faculties Appeal to Mothers, page 19
You should be teaching your children. You should be instructing them how to shun the vices and corruptions of this age. Instead of this, many are studying how to get something good to eat. You place upon your tables butter, eggs, and meat, and your children partake of them. They are fed with the very things that will excite their animal passions, and then you come to meeting and ask God to bless and save your children. How high do your prayers go? 2 Testimonies, page 361
Regarding people being more spiritual if they abstain from eating meat, Ellen White went so far as to affirm that those who are half-converted to the eating of meat will apostatize. Beware, all you Adventists who are still eating meat, you will join our ranks sooner or later
Greater reforms should be seen among the people who claim to be looking for the soon appearing of Christ. Health reform is to do among our people a work which it has not yet done. There are those who ought to be awake to the danger of meat eating, who are still eating the flesh of animals, thus endangering the physical, mental, and spiritual health. Many who are now only half converted on the question of meat eating will go from God’s people to walk no more with them. Counsels on Diets and Foods, page 382
Next point of Stan
Ellen White also condemned mustard, ketchup, and pepper and spices.
In this fast age, the less exciting the food, the better. Condiments are injurious in their nature. Mustard, pepper, spices, pickles, and other things of a like character, irritate the stomach and make the blood feverish and impure. The inflamed condition of the drunkard’s stomach is often pictured as illustrating the effect of alcoholic liquors. A similarly inflamed condition is produced by the use of irritating condiments. Soon ordinary food does not satisfy the appetite. The system feels a want, a craving, for something more stimulating. Counsels on Diets and Foods, page 339
The people are so far behind that we see it is all they can bear to have us draw the line upon their injurious indulgences and stimulating narcotics. We bear positive testimony against tobacco, spirituous liquors, snuff, tea, coffee, flesh meats, butter, spices, rich cakes, mince pies, a large amount of salt, and all exciting substances used as articles of food. 3 Testimonies, page 21
She also condemned eating between meals as being a sin.
The stomach must have its regular periods for labor and rest, hence eating irregularly between meals is a most pernicious violation of the laws of health. With regular habits, and proper food, the stomach will gradually recover. Spiritual Gifts, Volume 4A, page 129
For Ellen White, “violations of the laws of health” were sins as serious as violations of the Decalogue, so eating between meals is a “most pernicious” sin.
It is as truly a sin to violate the laws of our being as it is to break the ten commandments. To do either is to break God’s laws. Those who transgress the law of God in their physical organism, will be inclined to violate the law of God spoken from Sinai. Counsel on Diets and Foods, page 17
The transgression of physical law is the transgression of God’s law. Our Creator is Jesus Christ. He is the author of our being. He has created the human structure. He is the author of physical laws, as He is the author of the moral law. And the human being who is careless and reckless of the habits and practices that concern his physical life and health, sins against God. Counsel on Diets and Foods, page 43
It is just as much sin to violate the laws of our being as to break one of the ten commandments, for we cannot do either without breaking God’s law. We cannot love the Lord with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength while we are loving our appetites, our tastes, a great deal better than we love the Lord. We are daily lessening our strength to glorify God, when He requires all our strength, all our mind. By our wrong habits we are lessening our hold on life, and yet professing to be Christ’s followers, preparing for the finishing touch of immortality. Counsel on Diets and Foods, page 44
This is the Gospel of Health preached by Ellen White, which is supposed to be good news, inspired by God, a comfort for his people. Read, enjoy, and feel the comfort in brings.
Gabriel
