February 2, 2023 | Silver Spring, Maryland, United States | Ted N.C. Wilson, President, General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Ted Wilson (TW): Greetings, friends. Today, my wife, Nancy, is joining us as we explore the inspiring story of the Waldenses, recorded in Chapter 4 of The Great Controversy, by Ellen G. White.
Nancy Wilson (NW): In every age, there have been faithful witnesses for God—men, women, youth, and children who remain faithful to God’s Word no matter what the consequences might be. This was true in Bible times as well as throughout the history of the Christian church.
TW: In the early centuries of the dark ages, as papal power sought to bring the entire world under its control, groups of faithful believers were still letting their lights shine as they stayed true to Bible truth. Of these groups, the Waldenses were perhaps the most well-known. They served, during a time of great darkness, as a faithful link between the ancient, apostolic faith and the Reformation that came centuries later.
NW: The Waldensians lived in the valleys and mountains of the Piedmont Alps, a beautiful area of northwest Italy, bordering Switzerland to the northeast and France to the west. For centuries, Christians here were able to worship according to their conscience, but the time came when Rome insisted upon their submission.
TW: It was then that the prophecy recorded in Revelation 12:13, 14 was fulfilled—“Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child. But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent.”
In symbolic language, we understand the woman represents God’s true church, who flees to the mountains where she is nourished by God’s Word for 1,260 years during the Dark Ages of papal oppression. While we don’t have time here to fully unpack this Bible prophecy, to learn more I encourage you to visit the URL shown at the bottom of the screen, Click HERE
NW: Because of papal oppression, the faithful Waldenses were forced to retreat deeper into the mountains where they could worship God according to their beliefs, founded upon the written word of God. We are told, “The Waldenses were among the first of the peoples of Europe to obtain a translation of the Holy Scriptures. Hundreds of years before the Reformation they possessed the Bible in manuscript in their native tongue” (The Great Controversy, p. 65).
TW: Because the Waldenses had access to the Bible in their native language even during a time when Scripture was banned by the Roman Church, they knew its teachings and instructed their children in God’s truths, including the Bible Sabbath and the perpetuity of God’s law, the assurance of Christ’s sacrificing atonement, His role as our only mediator, and more.
NW: Because copies of the Bible were rare, the Waldenses committed its precious words to memory. Many were able to repeat large portions of the Old and New Testament by heart. The youth were trained to write out the Scriptures, carefully copying from the precious manuscripts. Some of these copies contained the whole Bible, others only brief selections. We read:
“By patient, untiring labor, sometimes in the deep, dark caverns of the earth, by the light of torches, the Sacred Scriptures were written out, verse by verse, chapter by chapter. Thus the work went on, the revealed will of God shining out like pure gold . . . Angels from heaven surrounded these faithful workers” (The Great Controversy, p. 69).
TW: While the Waldenses lived in secluded places, they understood the importance of interacting with those outside their inner circle and longed to lighten the heavy burdens placed on society by sharing with them the truths of God’s Word.
NW: Waldensian youth, trained from early childhood to be faithful to God, were sent to universities in France and Italy. Hidden in their garments were the precious Bible manuscripts. Carefully, they shared the Scriptures with those whose hearts seemed open to receive the truth.
TW: We are told, “Converts to the true faith were won in these institutions of learning, and frequently its principles were found to be permeating the entire school; yet the papal leaders could not, by the closest inquiry, trace the so-called corrupting heresy to its source” (The Great Controversy, p. 70).
NW: In addition, young men wishing to be Waldensian ministers, were required to serve three years as a missionary before being assigned a church at home. These missionaries went out two by two—a young man paired with an older, more experienced man who was responsible for the youth’s training.
TW: These missionaries carried out their work under the cover of a secular calling—usually that of a merchant or peddler. They carried attractive goods from faraway countries but hidden within their clothing were copies of the Bible. Prayerfully and with Spirit-led discernment, these missionaries shared their most precious treasure with their customers, and many burdens were lifted from the hearts of sin-sick, weary souls.
NW: Filled with joy, these happy souls returned home praising God, ready to share the Scriptures and diffuse light wherever they went. And in this way, God’s truth spread across Europe and beyond.
TW: But all was not well in the powerful halls of Rome. Determined to stamp out “heresy,” the papacy initiated crusades against these humble people, and under the guise of defending the Church, men, women, and children were driven from their homes, hunted like animals, tortured mercilessly, and killed in the most cruel and inhumane ways. Nevertheless, those who survived continued sharing Scriptural truth.
NW: Determined to rid the earth of this hated sect forever, the pope issued a public decree, known as a “papal bull,” condemning the Waldensians as heretics and demanding their slaughter. Incentives, such as the forgiveness of all sins and the procurement of property, were offered to all who joined the killing. Horrible atrocities took place, all in the name of God, as the crusaders carried out their vicious work.
TW: In the closing page of this chapter, we read these inspiring words: “The persecutions visited for many centuries upon this God-fearing people were endured by them with a patience and constancy that honored their Redeemer. Notwithstanding the crusades against them, and the inhuman butchery to which they were subjected, they continued to send out their missionaries to scatter the precious truth. They were hunted to death; yet their blood watered the seed sown, and it failed not of yielding fruit. . . . Scattered over many lands, they planted the seeds of the Reformation . . . and [it] is to be carried forward to the close of time by those who also are willing to suffer all things for ‘the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ’ (Rev. 1:9)” (The Great Controversy, p. 78).
As we consider the faithfulness of the Waldenses, I invite you to recommit yourself to God, to His Holy Word, and to His cause as we pray together.
Father in heaven. We thank you for inspiring people like the Walden Saez to stand firmly for Bible truth. Thank you for the bravery that those exhibited who carried pieces of Scripture to far flung places across Europe. Lord, we ask that you will help us as we are today’s modern Walden Seas to stand proudly for Bible truth, to share it with love and with care with others. And while we have access now to the written Word of God, help us to read it and share it. Thank you, Lord, for the wonderful example of those loyal, faithful people, the Walden Seas, and help us to be completely committed to you like them and bring people to the foot of the cross and a knowledge of your soon coming. In Jesus name, we ask it. Amen. Amen.