“And the serpent said unto the woman,
Ye shall not surely die . . . but your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods . . .” Genesis 3:4-5
“I am so sorry that Living Temple (first published in 1903) 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. Had I said anything, I would have been obliged to speak the truth as it was.
Representations had been shown me that some danger was approaching, and that I must prepare for it. I must write out the things God had given me in order to prepare for it.
I did not read Living Temple, though I had it in my library. At last my son said to me, “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.” He sat down beside me, and we read the paragraphs to which he referred. When we had finished I turned to him 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 (pantheism). The Omega would follow in a little while. I tremble for our people. These beautiful representations are similar to the temptation that the enemy brought to Adam and Eve in Eden.” – Sermons and Talks, vol.1 p.341