Sunday evening, May 15, Ellen White, with the party traveling to the Lake Union session, boarded the cars in Washington en route to Berrien Springs.
In the group were W. C. White, A. G. Daniells, W. W. Prescott, and Ellen White and her helpers, Sarah McEnterfer and Maggie Hare. The train was an hour late leaving, which meant that they were late reaching Milford Junction, Indiana, where they were to change trains for Berrien Center. That caused a five-hour wait.
The waiting room in Milford Junction was filled with tobacco smoke, which was very annoying to Ellen White, so her son set out to find a home where his mother could rest and wait the five hours until the next train came through. It was late afternoon. About five minutes' walk from the station he found the home of a Mrs. Muntz, who consented to allow the elderly traveler to come and spend a few hours in her home.
Ellen White, Sara, and Maggie made their way to Mrs. Muntz's house and were made comfortable in the living room. The old-fashioned rocking chairs appealed to Ellen White. She described her hostess as an elderly lady, a Dunkard or German Baptist, a very pleasant woman, who seemed to enjoy talking with her visitors. She had a respect for all Christians, and when Ellen White told her she was a writer of books, Mrs. Muntz's face brightened and she said her late husband would have enjoyed visiting Ellen White, for he had been a great reader. While they were visiting, a young woman came in with her child. She was the wife of the night operator at Milford Junction. It was soon discovered that the woman was a Seventh-day Adventist, the only one in the community.
Another neighbor came in during the evening. During the course of the conversation this woman asked Ellen White whether she would explain to her about the Sabbath. She describes what then took place:
I began by reading a text in the first of Genesis. Then I read the fourth commandment. When I had read this, they said, "Yes, but Sunday is the seventh day." I explained to them that Sunday is the first day, and that the day called Saturday by the world is the seventh day. Then I read the last six verses of the thirty-first chapter of Exodus, where the Sabbath is clearly specified as the sign between God and His people.
I had not time to say much, but what I read was sufficient, I hope, to lead them to search the Scriptures for themselves. I told them that Christ kept the Sabbath, and that the women rested on the seventh day, "according to the commandment,"and on the first day of the week brought spices and ointment to His sepulcher.
I read several other texts, and Mrs. Muntz wrote down all the references as I gave them. Before we parted, we had a season of prayer together, and they seemed to appreciate this greatly.--Letter 163, 1904.
At half past nine, with Mrs. Muntz carrying a lantern--for the night was dark and foggy--Ellen White, her two women helpers, and the two local visitors, walked to the station, where they bade farewell. Ellen White noted Mrs. Muntz's invitation that if she were ever to come that way again she wished her to call at her home (Ibid.).
Rather than complaining of the delay, Ellen White observed, "This was our experience at Milford Junction. We think that perhaps our delay was in the providence of God. It may be the means of arousing an interest in the truth."-- Ibid.
They waited until eleven o'clock for the train to come through. Within half an hour it deposited them at Elkhart, Indiana, where they stopped at a hotel for the night. It was about noon the following day when they reached Berrien Springs. Ellen White and her traveling companions were taken to Professor Magan's house, where they were made comfortable. Professor Magan was at Kalamazoo at the time, nursing his wife, who was very ill. So the party had the use of the Magan home.
Soon after her arrival Ellen White was urged to speak each morning at eleven during the union conference session, and this she consented to do.
Mrs. White Begins Her Work at the Session
Weary from the journey, she retired early, then woke up at 10:00 P.M. Her mind turned to the subjects that she should present at the meeting. In vision she was instructed to speak clearly about the Living Temple controversy. The next morning she did just that. She declared:
I am so sorry that Living Temple came out as it did, and was circulated, and the worst of it--that which struck right to my heart--was the assertion made regarding the book: "It contains the very sentiments that Sister White has been teaching." When I heard this, I felt so heartbroken that it seemed as if I could not say anything.--Manuscript 46, 1904.
She told of how she did not read The Living Temple when it first came out, even though she had it in her library, for it was not her custom to read controversial books. Finally Willie said to her, "'Mother, you ought to read at least some parts of the book, that you may see whether they are in harmony with the light that God has given you."' She told of how they sat down together (this was on September 23, 1903) and read together some of the paragraphs that dealt with theology. When they had finished, she turned to her son and said:
"These are the very sentiments against which I was bidden to speak in warning at the very beginning of my public work. When I first left the State of Maine, it was to go through Vermont and Massachusetts, to bear a testimony against these sentiments. Living Temple contains the alpha of these theories. The omega would follow in a little while. I tremble for our people."-- Ibid.
She told her audience that silence was eloquence when it came to discussing God, what He is, and where He is. "When you are tempted to speak of what God is, keep silence, because as surely as you begin to speak of this, you will disparage Him."-- Ibid.
She mentioned the dangers of sending young people to Battle Creek for their education. She told how the dangers to youth were especially acute. "They [young people] delighted in the beautiful representations--God in the flower, God in the leaf, God in the tree. But if God be in these things, why not worship them?"-- Ibid. Then she told about the iceberg vision and how it had changed her mind. She said that previously she had not intended to publish anything relative to the errors in the medical missionary work, but that vision had led her to send out and allow to be published the things that went to the Autumn Council in Washington in 1903.
She expressed her sympathy for the physicians associated with Dr. Kellogg and her sympathy for Dr. Kellogg, who had loaded himself down till the enemy found him easy prey. She declared:
Unless he changes his course, and takes an entirely different course, he will be lost to the cause of God.... I have lain awake night after night, studying how I could help Dr. Kellogg.... I have spent nearly whole nights in prayer for him. Week after week I have not slept till twelve o'clock, and then for weeks I have not been able to sleep past twelve o'clock.-- Ibid.
She closed her address with a plea for unity:
My brethren, the Lord calls for unity, for oneness. We are to be one in the faith. I want to tell you that when the gospel ministers and the medical missionary workers are not united, there is placed on our churches the worst evil that can be placed there.... It is time that we stood upon a united platform. But we cannot unite with Dr. Kellogg until he stands where he can be a safe leader of the flock of God.-- Ibid.
The union conference session moved forward in the usual way, with reports, committee work, and elections. But Ellen White's concentration was on the crisis for the salvation of souls. On Thursday night, the nineteenth, she was again given a vision. The next day she wrote a message to Elders Daniells and Prescott in which she said that she had been strongly impressed that "now is our time to save Dr. Kellogg" (Letter 165, 1904).
She said a determined effort must be made and urged that Dr. Kellogg be called to the meeting. In this letter she wrote:
Not one of us is above temptation. There is a work that Dr. Kellogg is educated to perform as no other man in our ranks can perform.... We are to draw with all our power, not making accusations, not prescribing what he must do, but letting him see that we are not willing that any should perish.-- Ibid.
She asked, "Is it not worth the trial?" She said that Satan was drawing the doctor. In her visions she had seen someone slipping down a precipice; a company was looking on indifferently, making no effort to save him. But one hand, the hand of Christ, was stretched out and the man was rescued (Manuscript 52, 1904).
Then she heard Christ speaking, telling the ones who were watching that they must look to Him and not to this man (Kellogg), that they should take heed to themselves. She heard Christ appealing to Dr. Kellogg to put on Christ. She heard Kellogg exclaim, "'I am sinful, but He hath covered me with His own righteousness, and henceforth I will go in the strength of the Lord God.'"--Letter 165, 1904. Then confessions by others followed. She saw Christ take the hand of W. K. Kellogg and the hand of the doctor and appeal to them and then to Elders Daniells and Prescott. "'Unify,'" the divine Visitor implored. "'Your unbelief and lack of unity have been a standing reproach to the people of God.... Press together, and heed every word of God that will create oneness. Avoid all faultfinding and dissension. Perplexing matters will adjust themselves if each one will walk circumspectly.'"-- Ibid.
The letter was written on Friday, May 20, copied by Maggie Hare the same day, and on the same day copies were given to Elders Daniells and Prescott, as well as to David Paulson and Edson White. Dr. Kellogg was urged to come to Berrien Springs; he arrived on Sabbath, May 21.
Discussion on Pantheism
During the conference session Ellen White had advised Elder Prescott to go ahead with the presentation of the subjects that would have a bearing on the pantheistic teachings. This was done, and soon there was considerable confusion in the meeting. Different ones were taking sides rather than concentrating on the great principles of truth. The records are not clear as to details, but personal situations were brought in and inadvisable moves were made.
Kellogg and his cohorts engaged actively in the discussions. What went on behind the scenes was opened up to Ellen White in vision while she was there, and of this she said:
In the scenes presented to me, I saw men talking together between the meetings about the mistakes and faults of their brethren. [Interlineation: Many things were not real mistakes, only in their own minds. They themselves were in darkness and being led by another spirit.] In the place of searching their own hearts, and praying and confessing their own mistakes, men seemed to be anxious that others should feel that they [interlined: their brethren] had acted unwisely. Angels from heaven, sent to minister wisdom and grace, were disappointed to see self pressing its way in, to make things appear in a wrong light. Men were talking and discussing, and conjectures were brought in that should have had no place in the meeting.--Manuscript 74, 1904.
Ellen White continued:
In some of the business meetings unwise words were spoken, which manifested suspicion and distrust of men bearing responsibilities. This aroused wrong feelings. Trifling things, looked at through the enemy's magnifying glass, became larger and larger. A mote became a mountain. The Holy Spirit was grieved. The men who ought to have been seeking the Lord with subdued contrite spirits were bringing to the foundation material represented by wood, hay, and stubble.-- Ibid.
It is often a case in matters of this kind that hindsight is much better than foresight. Following the session, Ellen White wrote:
A glorious victory might have been gained at the Berrien Springs meeting. Abundant grace was provided for all who felt their need. But at a critical time in the meeting unadvised moves were made, which confused minds and brought in controversy.
The Lord was working upon minds. Angels of God were in the assembly, and had all heeded the message borne, very different results would have been seen. Had all freely confessed their own sins, laying aside all anxiety about the acknowledgments and confessions to be made by others; had all humbled their hearts before God, as on the Day of Atonement in the days of ancient Israel, the Lord would have come in, and great victories would have been gained.-- Ibid.
W. C. White came under criticism, even from his own brother Edson, who was in sympathy with Dr. Kellogg. He intimated that Willie influenced his mother in some of the things she did and said. W. C. White did not deliver to certain men present a message his mother had placed in his hands for him to deliver. At a later time he was led to write of the experience at Berrien Springs:
Mother has no human help in the writing of the Testimonies. In the copying and preparation for the press, she has several helpers. And in the decision as to when and to whom she shall send the message written, she often takes counsel. When asked why she does not deliver every message as soon as it is written, she says, "I must deliver the message at the most appropriate time. Jesus said, 'I have many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.' Sometimes when I am about to send out a testimony, word comes to me, 'Not yet, wait for matters to develop."'
Sometimes she is given a message with instruction to deliver it if certain things take place. Therefore it becomes part of her duty to know what is transpiring, and that she may know, she reads the Review, and makes inquiry of leading workers by correspondence, and requests them to visit her and tell her of the progress of the work.
It often happens that Mother tells us that she intends to bear a certain testimony at a certain meeting. She takes her writings with the full intention of reading and speaking upon an important subject. But at the meeting she changes her plan. Some of the persons whom she expected to see are absent, and others who need a different message are present. Or the general tenor of the meeting calls for a different plan.
Oftentimes I have been commissioned to carry testimonies to meetings to be read at the most appropriate time, or not to be read, as seemed best. Sometimes I have been given messages to leading workers to be delivered under certain conditions. Sometimes I have been given messages with instruction not to deliver them if conditions had changed, or if it seemed that the time had not come.--30 WCW, pp. 598, 599.
It would seem that such factors were at work at the Berrien Springs meeting.
Ellen White continued her eleven-o'clock meetings each day. Most of them were reported, with the subjects as follows:
May 18 The Foundation of Our Faith
May 20 Lessons From Colossians, First and Second Chapters
May 21 Lessons From Revelation Three
May 22 A Plea for Unity
May 23 Remarks Made at Berrien Springs
May 23 Take Heed to Thyself
May 24 A Change of Feeling Needed
The Death of Mrs. Magan
Adding to the confusion and problems at the Berrien Springs meeting was the death of Mrs. Percy Magan on Thursday.
When the conference opened, Ida Magan was very critically ill in a hospital in Kalamazoo; her husband stayed close by her side. The strain of starting a new college with little financial support to help make the enterprise go was arduous and had a bearing on the health of those involved, which included the Magans. But a much greater impact was made by a rumor that had been started soon after the 1903 General Conference session held in Oakland, California. It was reported that Ellen White had indicated that the management of the school at Berrien Springs was crooked and wrong, that there was a one-man power there that would crush everyone who did not conform.
The rumor was repeated and sent in letters to students at Berrien Springs.
Under the pressure of this criticism and the other tremendous burdens she was carrying, Mrs. Magan's health broke, and she had to be hospitalized. When Ellen White heard the false and devilish rumor, she wrote to Magan stoutly denying it and offering assurance of her continued sympathy and support (Letter 111, 1903). When Magan read the letter to his wife, she cried as if her heart would break, she appreciated it so greatly (P. T. Magan to EGW, July 1, 1903).
But Mrs. Magan's condition continued to deteriorate. She contracted tuberculosis, and finally died in incredible suffering. The funeral was held on the Sabbath afternoon of the conference in Berrien Springs in what was then known as Memorial Hall. This hall had been built by a gift of $500 that Mrs. Magan had provided from her meager resources. Ellen White did not participate in the funeral, but in one of her talks she said:
Sister Magan worked with her husband, struggling with him and praying that he might be sustained. She did not think of herself, but of him. And God did sustain them, as they walked in the light.... But it seemed to her as if some of our brethren had not a heart of flesh.... His poor wife ... was informed that Sister White had taken a stand against her husband. Oh, why did anyone ever say such a thing? Sister White never turned against Brother Magan or against Brother Sutherland. But Sister Magan was so weighted down with sorrow that she lost her reason.... Now the poor woman has gone, leaving two motherless children. All this, because of the work done by unsanctified tongues.--Manuscript 54, 1904.
In striking words Ellen White declared that Mrs. Magan died as a martyr among her brethren. "My brethren," she pleaded, "this work of hurting one another does not pay. May God help you to cleanse your hearts from this evil thing."-- Ibid. But so deep were feelings and so bitter were animosities that even this appeal from Ellen White failed to accomplish all it should, for now the rumors quickly changed. It was reported that Ellen White had virtually accused Elders Daniells and Prescott of being Mrs. Magan's murderers (25 WCW, p. 230).
She admitted that Elders Prescott and Daniells had made mistakes, but they never had defied the Spirit of God and never had refused to be corrected. She then spoke in commendation of the two men for their work in Washington and said the Lord had greatly blessed them at every step. In the same letter she wrote to Brethren Magan and Sutherland concerning Daniells and his relationship to the Spirit of Prophecy:
God has chosen Elder Daniells to bear responsibilities, and has promised to make him capable, by His grace, of doing the work entrusted to him....
Elder Daniells is a man who has proved the testimonies to be true. And he has proved true to the testimonies. When he has found that he has differed from them, he has been willing to acknowledge his error, and come to the light.... The Lord has given Elder Daniells reproof when he has erred, and he has shown his determination to stand on the side of truth and righteousness, and to correct his mistakes....
I know that Elder Daniells is the right man in the right place.--Letter 255, 1904.
The Monday-Night Vision
On Monday night Ellen White was given a vision of what would yet take place at Berrien Springs. She wrote it out in a letter, which W. C. White read to the session on Wednesday, the last day of the meeting.
Last night matters were presented to me, showing that strange things would mark the conclusion of the conference in this place unless the Holy Spirit of God should change the hearts and minds of many of the workers. The medical missionaries especially should seek to have their souls transformed by the grace of God.--Manuscript 58, 1904.
She concluded her work at the session on Tuesday and left on Wednesday morning before it closed. As Ellen White looked back in time, she was led to write:
Had each one felt that he had done more to be forgiven by the Lord than he could realize, a wonderful change would have come into the meeting. [Interlineation: The Holy Spirit would have been revealed.] The representation given me of the Berrien Springs meeting is similar to the picture presented in the third chapter of Zechariah. "He showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him."--Manuscript 74, 1904.
Ellen White had looked for a break in the situation over pantheism and Dr. Kellogg, but the matter had not turned out as she had hoped. The experience was a dark and disappointing one. Of this she wrote to Elder Daniells:
The outcome of the meeting at Berrien Springs, as far as Dr. Kellogg is concerned, was not as we had hoped it would be; but we will put our trust in the Lord. I know that the enemy will try at every turn to discourage and disappoint us.... We will leave with the Lord all the sad things with reference to Dr. Kellogg. If we can do him good in any way, let us show that we do not want to hurt him, but to help him. Let us avoid everything that would provoke retaliation. Let us give no occasion for contention.--Letter 195, 1904.
After the Berrien Springs meeting there was a strong effort on the part of Dr. Kellogg to draw some of the leading workers to Battle Creek for continued discussions on the question of The Living Temple. W. C. White and A. G. Daniells resisted anything of this kind, and Ellen White supported them in that resistance (24WCW, pp. 24, 25; 25 WCW, pp. 280-282).