{"id":8919,"date":"2026-04-13T18:08:38","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T16:08:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/advent-ug.org\/answers\/ni-tse-nepravda-bilshist-navit-bohoslovskykh-tekstiv-vziati-z-inshykh-pysmennyki\/"},"modified":"2026-05-10T00:50:11","modified_gmt":"2026-05-09T22:50:11","slug":"chy-pravda-shcho-ellen-uait-zapozychuvala-teksty-inshykh-avtoriv","status":"publish","type":"answers","link":"https:\/\/advent-ug.org\/en\/answers\/chy-pravda-shcho-ellen-uait-zapozychuvala-teksty-inshykh-avtoriv\/","title":{"rendered":"Is it true that Ellen White borrowed texts from other authors?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>The question of whether Ellen White used texts from other authors requires an honest answer\u2014without apologetic silence and without sensational exaggeration.<\/b><\/p>\n<h2>What is reliably known<\/h2>\n<p>Researchers (including Walter Rea in the book \u201cWhite Out\u201d and the more balanced analysis of William Peterson) have established that White did indeed borrow wording from books of her time\u2014especially in descriptions of health and in certain parts of \u201cThe Great Controversy.\u201d She used:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The works of health reformers (Creswell, Troll, and others) in her articles on diet and medicine.<\/li>\n<li>Sources from Protestant Reformation literature in \u201cThe Great Controversy.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Why this is not \u201cplagiarism\u201d in the usual sense<\/h2>\n<p>In the 19th century, copyright norms were fundamentally different: <b>borrowing without quotation marks and references was standard practice<\/b>, not a violation. White herself repeatedly said that she \u201creads and excerpts what is useful.\u201d Publishers knew about this and did not consider it a problem.<\/p>\n<h2>Inspiration and literary dependence<\/h2>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cGod has not given us a new language,\u201d White herself wrote, explaining that the Lord reveals thoughts and purposes, but the words and form of their expression depend on the prophet himself.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>This agrees with the biblical understanding of inspiration: Luke investigated and interviewed witnesses (Luke 1:1\u20134), and Paul quoted Greek poets (Acts 17:28). <b>The use of external sources does not contradict divine inspiration.<\/b><\/p>\n<h2>Practical meaning<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>The question of White\u2019s sources is academically interesting and open to honest study.<\/li>\n<li>But \u201cborrowing\u201d \u2260 \u201cher entire contribution is someone else\u2019s.\u201d The theological content, the coherence of the system, and the spiritual depth of her writings are her own.<\/li>\n<li>Study White together with Scripture\u2014and Scripture tests all authors.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>The honest answer: yes, she borrowed. But no, this does not destroy the credibility of her ministry. Divine inspiration is not about flawless originality in every word, but about faithfulness in conveying God\u2019s purpose.<\/b><\/p>","protected":false},"template":"","meta":{"faq_question":"\u0427\u0438 \u043f\u0440\u0430\u0432\u0434\u0430, \u0449\u043e \u0415\u043b\u043b\u0435\u043d \u0423\u0430\u0439\u0442 \u0437\u0430\u043f\u043e\u0437\u0438\u0447\u0443\u0432\u0430\u043b\u0430 \u0442\u0435\u043a\u0441\u0442\u0438 \u0456\u043d\u0448\u0438\u0445 \u0430\u0432\u0442\u043e\u0440\u0456\u0432?","bible_refs":"Luke 1:1-3, 1 Thessalonians 5:20-21","answer_lang":"uk","source_question":"\u041d\u0456 \u0446\u0435 \u043d\u0435\u043f\u0440\u0430\u0432\u0434\u0430. \u0411\u0456\u043b\u044c\u0448\u0456\u0441\u0442\u044c \u043d\u0430\u0432\u0456\u0442\u044c \u0431\u043e\u0433\u043e\u0441\u043b\u043e\u0432\u0441\u044c\u043a\u0438\u0445 \u0442\u0435\u043a\u0441\u0442\u0456\u0432 \u0432\u0437\u044f\u0442\u0456 \u0437 \u0456\u043d\u0448\u0438\u0445 \u043f\u0438\u0441\u044c\u043c\u0435\u043d\u043d\u0438\u043a\u0456\u0432. \u0406 \u0442\u0438\u043c \u0431\u0456\u043b\u044c\u0448\u0435 \u0442\u0435\u043a\u0441\u0442\u0438 \u043f\u0440\u043e \u0437\u0434\u043e\u0440\u043e\u0432\u02bc\u044f. \u041d\u0430\u0432\u0456\u0442\u044c \u043f\u0440\u043e \u043a\u0443\u0440\u0456\u043d\u043d\u044f \u043d\u0435 \u0432\u043e\u043d\u0430 \u043f\u0435\u0440\u0448\u0430 \u043f\u0438\u0441\u0430\u043b\u0430"},"answer_topic":[148],"class_list":["post-8919","answers","type-answers","status-publish","hentry","answer_topic-ellen-white"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/advent-ug.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/answers\/8919","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/advent-ug.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/answers"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/advent-ug.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/answers"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/advent-ug.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8919"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"answer_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advent-ug.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/answer_topic?post=8919"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}