Walter T. Rea

Walter T. Rea (1922-2014) is a former Seventh-day Adventist known for his criticisms of the inspiration of Ellen G. White, co-founder of the church.

Biography

Rea was born in 1922. He died Aug 2014. the pastor of the Adventist church in Long Beach, California.

Ellen White

In 1980, the Ellen G. White Estate and the Biblical Research Institute decided to begin a study of White's inspiration and other topics. A scholarly committee met at the Glendale Adventist Hospital on January 28 and 29 to discuss Rea's studies into White's use of sources. A Roman Catholic lawyer, Vincent L. Ramik, undertook a study of Ellen G. White's writings during the early 1980s, and concluded that they were "conclusively unplagiaristic."

Rea's employment by the church was terminated. He claimed that up to 80 or 90% of White's writings were plagiarized.

Rea was the first to document such large scales of borrowing, citing 75 books White depended on. He was one of the key figures who introduced new views of White to the church.