And let's not forget the infamous OYSTER fiasco
:
[SIZE=+1]1882 - Oysters and Herrings?[/SIZE]
Mrs. White was still privately eating
unclean meat a full 13 years after her public commitment! In this 1882 excerpt from a letter to her daughter-in-law, Mary Kelsey White, she expresses her fondness for herring and oysters:
Mary, if you can get me a good box of herrings - fresh ones - please do so. These last ones that Willie got are bitter and old. If you can buy cans, say (a) half dozen cans of good tomatoes, please do so. We shall need them. If you can get a few cans of good oysters, get them.13
This letter gives credence to
Fannie Bolton's claim that Ellen White was discovered in a restaurant "
very gratified in eating big white raw oysters with vinegar, pepper and salt".14
Some find it difficult to believe that Sister White actually ate oysters because her testimonies tell Adventists they should refuse to eat them:
His stronghold seems to be giving way; his hitherto brave heart is growing weak. He is invited to accompany them for a walk, and they lead him to a saloon. Oysters or other refreshments are called for, and he is ashamed to draw away and refuse the treat.15
[SIZE=+1]1890 - More Oysters![/SIZE]
Oysters as an Aphrodisiac"Already during the time of the Roman Empire oysters enjoyed a randy reputation, which only increased over the ages. During the "Golden Century" in the Netherlands (the 17th century) oysters were the symbol, the very incarnation of an aphrodisiac. Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love, sprang forth from the sea on an oyster shell and promptly gave birth to Eros, hence the origin of the word, "aphrodisiac". The great Casanova also used to start his meals with 12 dozen oysters."19 According to Leviticus 11:10 anything from the waters without fins or scales is "unclean." In addition, oysters have long been considered an aphrodisiac. Surely James White must have recognized this because in 1870 he lambasted those who ate oysters:
"What kinds of edibles command the highest price in the market? Those that stimulate this passion, and because they create impure desires. What mean those oyster stews, and crab parties, and terrapin soups, and squab suppers, wild fowls, cloves, and a host of other like things? Eaten, in many instances in high (?low) life, expressly to beget unhallowed desires! Oh! shame, where is thy blush! Do you want more proof? Behold the fertile South. But particulars are too revolting, both as regards the beastly indulgence of whites with blacks, and the number of rakes [immoral men] and harlots among the latter! Our world is literally FULL of sensuality!"20
James blasted those who ate oysters because of their supposed power to stimulate "sensual desires." Yet surprisingly, his own wife fostered a love for these forbidden, unclean creatures. In 1907, Adventist physician Dr. Charles Stewart wrote a letter to Mrs. White questioning why she ate oysters:
"Three parties, all Seventh-day Adventists, two of them officially connected with the denomination, state for a number of years after you received the light on health reform, that you ate meat and oysters. Two of these persons within the past ninety days told me personally that you ate oysters in their own home, on one occasion as late as 1890. Another stated that he saw you eating oysters in a restaurant. "If you deny that you ate oysters and state that the statements of these two men are false, I will make an affidavit to this statement and give you the names of the two persons referred to so that they can be asked for an explanation."21
Mrs. White never responded to Dr. Stewart's letter, nor did she deny the statements of the two men who saw her eating oysters.
http://www.ellenwhiteexposed.com/contra6.htm
