In 1858 as Ellen White first wrote the account of what had been revealed to her in the great controversy visions of 1848 and 1858, she devoted 52 small pages to the life of Christ. Sixteen of these gave a very brief review of His ministry, and 36 were devoted to the few days of the last scenes of His life. These pages were expanded in volumes 2 and 3 of the Spirit of Prophecy series in 1877 and 1878; 387 larger pages were given to His general ministry and 254 pages to the Passion Week and His closing ministry. With Patriarchs and Prophets and The Great Controversy in the field, it was planned that the work, in its preparation called "The Life of Christ," would represent a further amplification, particularly of the account of the three years and more of the life and ministry of our Lord up to the Passion Week.
To this project, Ellen White and Marian Davis turned their attention in Australia. Bible study, visions, prayer, meditation, discussion with her literary assistant, even "hard thinking," all under the general superintendence of the Holy Spirit, were involved in the writing.
As the two women worked together with dedicated purpose, they had at hand for reference several standard works by other authors, such as William Hanna's Life of Our Lord, and Cunningham Geikie's Life and Words of Christ. Ellen White was acquainted with Daniel March's Walks and Homes of Jesus and his Night Scenes in the Bible. Geikie's Hours With the Bible and Edersheim's works on the Temple and its services and Jewish social life were known to her as well as some others. These books constituted an aid to her in her descriptions of places, customs, and historical events. It was a prevailing practice for one commentator to borrow the wording of another, considering truth common property. It could well be that some of the books to which Ellen White had easy access may have contained materials traceable to a number of authors. Ingram Cobbin in his preface to his Condensed Commentary and Family Exposition of the Holy Bible, page iv, declared: "All the commentators have drawn largely from the fathers, especially from St. Augustine," and then points out the borrowings of one from another, naming authors so involved.
Ellen White greatly appreciated the work of her helpers. Of Marian Davis she wrote:
I feel very thankful for the help of Sister Marian Davis in getting out my books. She gathers materials from my diaries, from my letters, and from the articles published in the papers. I greatly prize her faithful service. She has been with me for twenty-five years, and has constantly been gaining increasing ability for the work of classifying and grouping my writings (Letter 9, 1903 [see also Selected Messages 3:93]).
At another time, writing of Miss Davis' work, Ellen White explained:
She does her work in this way: She takes my articles which are published in the papers and pastes them in blank books. She also has a copy of all the letters I write. In preparing a chapter for a book, Marian remembers that I have written something on that special point, which may make the matter more forcible. She begins to search for this, and if when she finds it, she sees that it will make the chapter more clear, she adds it.
The books are not Marian's productions, but my own, gathered from all my writings. Marian has a large field from which to draw, and her ability to arrange the matter is of great value to me. It saves poring over a mass of matter, which I have no time to do.... Marian is a most valuable help to me in bringing out my books (Letter 61a, 1900 [see also Selected Messages 3:91, 92]).
Others Who Helped
A number of others helped Ellen White throughout the years. Among these were:
1. Mary Clough. In 1876 Ellen White was on the Pacific Coast, living in their new home in Oakland. James White, president of the General Conference, was detained in Battle Creek in administrative work. She had good literary help in her niece, Mary Clough, and she pushed ahead with her writing on the life of Christ.
The first drafts of her materials were in her own handwriting. Mary would edit the pages and put them into the form of a chapter, and then copy it. Of course, the finished work was also in handwritten form, for it was six or seven years later that typewriters came into use in Mrs. White's work. Every morning she would write diligently in her upstairs room. After the noonday meal she would go to Mary Clough's room, lie on a sofa, and listen as Mary read the materials prepared from her first written draft. "The precious subjects open to my mind well," she wrote in early April (Letter 4, 1876).
2. W. C. White. Her son "Willie" helped with editing, reading manuscript, choice of illustrations; finding a publisher, business arrangements. He had no part in the writing, wording, or literary content of the work.
3. Sara McEnterfer. Sara McEnterfer, a graduate nurse from Battle Creek, assisted Ellen White in various ways and traveled with her in America and Europe. She was considered one of three "literary assistants" who helped Mrs. White in Australia, and was replaced by Fannie Bolton when she became ill and had to return to the States temporarily. She even took a turn at carpentry when the staff were pushing forward to the target date for the opening of Avondale College. She probably read copy occasionally, but did no share in the literary work.
4. Fannie Bolton. Fannie Bolton was one of three assistants who traveled with Ellen White on the S.S. Alameda when the party embarked from San Francisco for Australia. Fannie had been invited to join Mrs. White's staff in 1887. The daughter of a Methodist minister, she was brought into the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Chicago through the evangelistic efforts of G. B. Starr and his wife. At the time, she was a correspondent for the Chicago Daily Inter Ocean. She received her literary training at the ladies' seminary at Evanston, Illinois (DF 445, G. B. Starr to L. E. Froom, March 19, 1933), and seemed well fitted for a promising future. Starr and others gave her a hearty recommendation. She was barely acquainted with Ellen White and W. C. White, but was employed when Mrs. White returned from Europe. She was to fit in where needed, but her work was to be largely in preparing Mrs. White's materials for the Review and Herald, Signs of the Times, and the Youth's Instructor. She traveled west with the White group and resided with them in the White home in Healdsburg, California. W. C. White reported that Fannie "proved to be brilliant and entertaining, and although somewhat erratic at times, was loved by the other members of the family."
Unfortunately, Fannie's years of service with Ellen White in Australia (18911896) brought mental anguish to Mrs. White because of Fannie's changeable moods, erratic course, and unfaithfulness. She was dismissed numerous times, but was graciously restored to her work. She finally resigned, recognizing her unworthiness and unsuitability to the work. She was replaced by Maggie Hare.
5. Maggie Hare. Maggie Hare was one of the large Hare family whose paternal home at Kaeo, New Zealand, Ellen White had visited (see chapter 39). A young secretary, Maggie assisted Sara in handling the immense amount of mail going out to the United States and coming in. She replaced Fannie Bolton in the task of selecting from Ellen White's manuscripts and letters material suitable for publishing in periodicals. When Mrs. White returned to the United States in 1900, Maggie was one of the four women assistants who accompanied her.
Finishing The Writing On The Desire of Ages
So the work in Australia on the life of Christ book did not consist in producing creatively, chapter after chapter, but rather in Ellen White's writing more fully what had been revealed to her on Christ's life in many visions.
Some years provided more favorable opportunities than others. While Mrs. White's work on the project was intermittent, Marian Davis kept right at the task. The latter often felt it was about finished and then would be frustrated and at the same time delighted when light was received by Ellen White in vision that, when written out, added rich sources of materials. The work on the manuscript stretched from 1892 through 1897 and into 1898. Even then, with the appearance of the finished book on December 10, 1898, there was still more to do on the life of Christ. That was presented in Christ's Object Lessons, published two years later.
The Proposal Of Two Volumes
As the work progressed and the manuscripts grew, the staff working at Sunnyside proposed issuing two volumes of about 600 pages each. W. C. White felt that if this plan met the approval of the publishers, the materials for the first volume would be ready in March or April 1896 (9 WCW, pp. 198, 199). Assuming this would be done, Ellen White was reading the manuscript for the first volume (Letter 90, 1896), and in writing to Edson on February 16, she indicated that "we now have it about ready for the printer" (Letter 144, 1896).
Ellen White's Humility In Writing
In a letter to O. A. Olsen, president of the General Conference, she wrote of how as she undertook this work she was almost overwhelmed with the subject:
This week I have been enabled to commence writing on the life of Christ. Oh, how inefficient, how incapable I am of expressing the things which burn in my soul in reference to the mission of Christ! I have hardly dared to enter upon the work. There is so much to it all. And what shall I say, and what shall I leave unsaid? I lie awake nights pleading with the Lord for the Holy Spirit to come upon me, to abide upon me....
I walk with trembling before God. I know not how to speak or trace with pen the large subject of the atoning sacrifice. I know not how to present subjects in the living power in which they stand before me. I tremble for fear lest I shall belittle the great plan of salvation by cheap words. I bow my soul in awe and reverence before God and say, "Who is sufficient for these things?" (Letter 40, 1892).
Only occasionally at this time did she mention specific visions in which scenes pertaining to the life of Christ passed before her, but in connection with first writing on the subject in 1858, the terms "I saw," "I was shown," or other terms indicating divine revelation and inspiration, frequently occurred. In 1889 she told of how "the betrayal, trial, and crucifixion of Jesus" had passed before her point by point (Letter 14, 1889). In 1900 she wrote:
Heavenly scenes were presented to me in the life of Christ, pleasant to contemplate, and again painful scenes which were not always pleasant for Him to bear which pained my heart (Manuscript 93, 1900).
Extrascriptural Information
In her writing in the 1870s and again in the 1890s on the life and ministry of Christ, Ellen White often introduced significant extrabiblical points in historical narrative not mentioned by the Gospel writers--points in which she deals in sufficient detail to make it evident that her basic source in writing was the visions given to her. The following illustrations of this are drawn from three of her published accounts of the life of Christ.
At His trial before Herod, Spiritual Gifts, 1:51: "They spit in His face.... He meekly raised His hand, and wiped it off."
In feeding the 5,000, The Spirit of Prophecy 2:260, 261: "The disciples, seeing Him pale with weariness and hunger, besought Him to rest from His toil and take some refreshment. Their entreaties being of no avail, they consulted together as to the propriety of forcibly removing Him from the eager multitude, fearing that He would die of fatigue. Peter and John each took an arm of their blessed Master and kindly endeavored to draw Him away. But He refused to be removed from the place."
The Resurrection, The Desire of Ages, 779, 780: "'The angel of the Lord descended from heaven.' ... This messenger is he who fills the position from which Satan fell.... The soldiers see him removing the stone as he would a pebble, and hear him cry, 'Son of God, come forth; Thy Father calls Thee.' They see Jesus come forth from the grave."
The Work Of The Holy Spirit
Looking back in 1906, Ellen White freely attributed to the work of the Holy Spirit the truths set forth in the books tracing the great controversy story. She mentioned only three of the Conflict books, for Prophets and Kings and The Acts of the Apostles were not yet published.
How many have read carefully Patriarchs and Prophets, The Great Controversy, and The Desire of Ages? I wish all to understand that my confidence in the light that God has given stands firm, because I know that the Holy Spirit's power magnified the truth, and made it honorable, saying: "This is the way, walk ye in it." In my books the truth is stated, barricaded by a "Thus saith the Lord."
The Holy Spirit traced these truths upon my heart and mind as indelibly as the law was traced by the finger of God, upon the tables of
stone, which are now in the ark (Letter 90, 1906 [Colporteur Ministry, 126]).
Who Will Publish It?
This was a time, too, when the matter of the publisher had to be settled. Consideration had been given to offering the manuscript to Fleming H. Revell, who had handled Steps to Christ in a very acceptable manner. W. C. White wrote:
[Mother] says that there are people who will be reached by the publications through outside publishers, who are not likely to get them from any of our agents; and she believes that much good has been accomplished through our placing Steps to Christ in the hands of Revell to publish (8 WCW, p. 36).
W. C. White felt that there were important and far-reaching advantages for Revell to do the publishing. He mentioned one, perhaps little known to the average person: "He is brother-in-law to Moody, [who is the] leading American evangelist and [who] as far as I can see has the lead in evangelical literature" (Ibid., p. 35).
Both the Review and Herald and the Pacific Press had issued a number of the E. G. White books, but things had become complicated since the enlarged and strengthened General Conference Association was handling denominational book publishing. That organization carried the responsibility of negotiating with the printers, and sent much of the work to the nearby Review and Herald. By contract, the Pacific Press stood in a reasonable degree of independence, and Ellen White could negotiate with them directly. The experience of the General Conference Association in publishing Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing in 1896 (a spinoff of the "Life of Christ" manuscript), particularly in the matter of illustrations, led W. C. White on May 10 to exclaim, "Never, never, Never!" (9 WCW, p. 436).
Working through a second party in getting out books just did not work well. On May 6, 1896, Ellen White wrote to Edson:
I have decided to negotiate with Pacific Press to publish "Life of Christ." We are now waiting for them to obtain cuts to go in the book. The first book is completed; the second is in the process of completion (Letter 150, 1896).
Decision On The Title
Up to this point the project had been referred to as the "Life of Christ," and it was assumed that that would be the title. With the possible exceptions of The Great Controversy and the Testimonies, Ellen White did not select the titles for her books. As the time approached when a final decision on the title had to be made, suggestions came from various people in Australia and America. Writing to C. H. Jones, manager of the Pacific Press, on October 22, W. C. White said, "As regards the title, I do not wish to say much till I have the criticism of others" (11WCW, p. 20). Some, he felt, were "a hundred miles nearer being appropriate than the best of the others that have been recommended to us." He promised to send a cable after consulting "the wise men here, and have Mother's opinion, and that of Sister Davis." The suggestion of the publishers narrowed down to "The Desire of All Nations" and "The Desire of Ages," both based on Haggai 2:7, "The desire of all nations shall come."
The Last Touches
On June 19 Ellen White was still producing material that needed to be included in the early chapters of the book. She wrote: "I am writing upon subjects which stir every fiber of my being. The preexistence of Christ--how invaluable is this truth to the believer!" (Manuscript 65, 1896).
In July she was writing on the closing scenes of the life of Jesus. Her diary for July 28 shows how deeply she felt about her subject:
In writing upon the life of Christ I am deeply wrought upon. I forget to breathe as I should. I cannot endure the intensity of feeling that comes over me as I think of what Christ has suffered in our world. He was a "man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief"; "he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed," if we receive Him by faith as our personal Saviour! (Manuscript 174, 1897).
The Desire of Ages first came from the press in two beautiful art volumes, with continuous numbering of pages. Shortly thereafter the books were combined into a single volume of 865 pages. Very near the close of the year, December 10, 1898, copies arrived at Cooranbong and were eagerly examined by Ellen White, W. C. White, and her staff of workers. The monumental task was completed. Now the book would bless millions in the years to come.