EGW and Milton - strange bedfellows?

[abelisle]

In studying this week's (4/10/2010) lesson, I've come across some interesting comments that align the thoughts of Milton in Paradise Lost with some of the writings of EGW.

Here is a sample from the Sabbath School commentary over on the Spectrum site: "No author forces us to examine this question more thoroughly than John Milton in Paradise Lost. When he makes the audacious claim in the opening invocation that in his epic he will “justify the ways of God to men,” he implies that God’s choice to give humanity the freedom to fall needs to be justified. And, indeed, anyone who has ever struggled to understand the problem of evil has, in essence, been seeking this same justification. How could God leave his creation so vulnerable and seemingly ill-equipped to use the power of choice they had been granted?"

http://www.spectrummagazine.org/articles/sabbath_school/2010/04/04/%E2%80%9C_power_choice%E2%80%9D

Another comment: " Drawing inspiration from Milton’s Paradise Lost and Ellen White’s “cosmic conflict” motif (which White herself actually took in part from Milton),. . . " from another Spectrum article (http://www.spectrummagazine.org/blog/201...lict_part_three)

Yet the official Adventist stand on the influence of Paradise Lost on the cosmic conflict motifs of EGW is that of accidental influence or none at all.

"A few weeks later he brought a copy of Paradise Lost, and read to Father and Mother some of Milton's descriptions of the experiences of Lucifer in his great rebellion. Later on he brought a new copy which he had purchased and gave it to Mother.

She thanked him for it, and looked at it a few minutes without opening it, put it on a high shelf in a cupboard built in back of the stove and under the chimney support. There the book lay many days and several years.

In view of the fact that a careless statement has been made by one of our much loved teachers that Milton's Paradise Lost was a favorite book of Sister White's, and that she read it often, I think it is worthwhile to make this clear and full statement, and to add to the above, that I never saw Milton's poem in her hand, and never saw her reading it. I never heard her refer to the book, except on one or two occasions, when she stated to visitors what I have related above, and said that she felt that she ought not to study what anyone else had written regarding the rebellion in heaven until she had written out very fully what had been revealed to her.

http://www.whiteestate.org/issues/HowEGWbksWCW.html

I am left with 2 options" 1) that she did listen, read and use some of Milton's ideas or 2) both she and Milton were similarly inspired about issues pertaining to her cosmic conflict motif. Just google "EGW and Paradise Lost" and see the overwhelming amount of parallel statements from Paradise Lost that is evidenced in EGW's writings.

I'm assuming that the majority of people who will respond to this thread have not read Paradise Lost, so I'm also hoping that the responses to my inquiry are not simply apologetical defenses of EGW's inspirational status?

I guess there have been others, besides EGW who have had divine inspiration re: Biblical matters.

But I would love to know, considering the preponderance of literary evidence, where the truth lies? Did she or didn't she?

Alex

[Gerr]

I've read "Paradise Lost" at least twice that I recall. It never touched my heart the way the Bible or EGW's writings do.

[Kevin H]

Are you only left with one of the two options or could both options be possible? Besides, Ellen White got the Great Controversy vision at a funeral and Milton got the idea for Paridise Lost at a funeral.

Mrs. White tells us the method she used (the context was with the healt reformers, but this was her method and appears by language to have been done with Milton too.) It was a 3 step method. First Mrs. White would avoid reading the others wrote on the topic until she had written out what she saw, as she wanted to have a basic frame work from the vision not influenced by reading the others. Then she would look a what the others wrote and would use their words to express what she saw. Third step, Review and edit her work as she comes across better information to read and update her work by the newest studys and telling her staff to look for the best information to update her writings.

[abelisle]

Are you only left with one of the two options or could both options be possible? Besides, Ellen White got the Great Controversy vision at a funeral and Milton got the idea for Paridise Lost at a funeral.

Can you provide the source for your remark that Milton was inspired to write Paradise Lost at a funeral? I'm not acquainted with this fact, other than he said his muse revealed info to him at night which he wrote about the following morning.

Thanks

Alex

[phkrause]

I understand that he wrote PL from prison?

pk

[rudywoofs (Pam)]

I think that was Pilgrim's Progress.

[Kevin H]

I got it from a lecture about Milton and Paridise lost from "The Teaching Company" I forgot if the funeral was directly Paridise lost or not but it played a pivitol role either directly or indirectly for him with Paridise lost and I could not help but notice the relationship of Paridise lost to a funeral and the Great Controversy vision to a funeral.

[Guest]

"His place of birth a solemn angel tells

To simple shepherds, keeping watch by night;

They gladly thither haste, and, by a choir

Of squadron'd angels, hear his carol sung;

A virgin is his mother, but his sire

The Power of the Most High."–Milton