Hello! I’m the current president of the Branch Davidian Seventh Day Adventists (as of 2013), and I’m also the creator of this website. My mission is to teach a message that can be summarized as follows:
1. Materialism
Materialism is the idea that all existence is exclusively material/physical. I’ll unpack what this means in a moment, but first, it’s important to realize that this position is addressing the fundamental nature of reality, and as such, it has significant implications for virtually every area of belief and practice. If you measure the importance of a subject by how many others it impacts (and to what degree), it’s hard to think of a subject more important than the basic nature of reality. The nature of reality determines the nature of truth, so what you think about the nature of reality has the potential to change what you think is true when it comes to anything and everything else. Most obviously are questions related to the nature of consciousness and death. Can consciousness survive the death of the body? Or even more basic, do we have a non-physical part to us at all? But there are also questions like, Is there a realm of existence beyond time and space? Can something happen without a physical cause? Do we have free will? The questions go on and on, ranging from cosmology to psychology, to medicine, to history, to politics, etc. Your beliefs in each of these domains are affected by what you think about the basic nature of reality.
The most foundational claim of the message I advocate is that reality is solely material. Negatively stated: non-physicality doesn’t exist. This might surprise you since materialism is popularly imagined to be tied to atheism and anti-religious ideology. Historically and cross-culturally, however, this simply isn’t the case. While there have been atheists who are materialists, most atheists (past and present) are not materialists. Furthermore, the most influential materialists in the English-speaking world have been Christians. This includes the likes of Thomas Hobbes, Joseph Priestley, and Thomas Jefferson. And the largest organized movement of materialists in modern times was a Christian movement (the early Seventh-day Adventists). Importantly, the position of Christian materialists is not that materialism is merely compatible with Christianity; it is that materialism is the philosophical bedrock of Jesus’ teachings. The claim is that Jesus and his early followers were actually materialists, as were the Hebrew prophets before them. I and those working with me have created a series of videos providing evidence for this very position. It’s called Before Spirit Was Spiritualistic: Philosophical Materialism from Genesis to Jesus.
Now, saying “materialism is the idea that only matter exists” is perhaps understandable enough, but really, to fully understand the idea, a more complete explanation is needed. And the place to start is defining matter since that is what materialism posits as the sole “stuff” of existence. While the word matter can mean different things in different contexts, in the context of philosophical materialism, it is equivalent to body. So, in the next few paragraphs, we’ll unpack what body is and see that this basic notion implies a suite of attributes that inescapably belong to all bodies (all matter) and thus, if materialism is correct, to all reality. As we go through this, please pay attention to how each attribute is logically demanded by the basic notion of body.
To be body is to have spatial extension, to occupy space in three dimensions—length, width, and height.
Having length, width, and height entails having volume since volume is simply the measure of three-dimensional extent. Another term for volume is “three-dimensional size.” So every body must have size.
Next, since every body occupies space, every body must have a place since a thing’s place is simply the space it occupies. And, to state the obvious, something’s place is its location.
Let’s take a moment to consider the distinction between these last two attributes in order to prepare ourselves to more easily comprehend the next attribute. Size is the amount of space a thing occupies in comparison to other things (an elephant is big in comparison to an ant, but small in comparison to a planet). Place/location, on the other hand, is where something is in relation to other things. In other words, location refers to the space something occupies in terms of its position and proximity relative to other things.
Now, shape. While location is the space something occupies in relation to other things, shape is the space something occupies in relation to itself. On this point, an example should help. Imagine a ball. To describe its shape, one would need to refer to how one point of the ball relates to other points of the ball. Most simply, you could say that if you start from the center and measure the space outward from that point, the amount of space occupied will be the same in every direction. For a cube, or another shape, the measurements of the occupied space from one point of the object to another will be different. This illustrates that the shape of something truly is the space it occupies in relation to itself—it is the combination of where each part of a thing is in relation to all other parts of that thing. And again, take note that having shape is a natural and unavoidable consequence of occupying space (being body), so shape is an inherent attribute of bodies.
A necessary component of what determines the shape of a thing is its internal structure, that is, the arrangement of its parts. This is true whether we’re talking about discrete parts, such as the parts of a car engine, or continuously interconnected parts, like the fibers of a tree. In all cases, where there is shape, there is internal structure that consists of parts organized in some sort of arrangement. While it may be easiest to think of examples when considering solids, this principle applies to matter in all states. Take, for example, liquids: water and oil differ due to differences in their internal structures (the arrangement of their parts).
The very fact of having parts logically leads to another unavoidable attribute of body: divisibility. No matter how challenging it may be in practice, where there are parts, they are theoretically divisible since a part is a distinct, separable component of the whole.
Lastly, where there is divisibility, there is potential for change. If parts can be divided, they can be moved, thus changing their arrangement. And potential for change is nothing short of subjection to time since time is the continuous sequence of changes.
So, to summarize, matter is body and body is three-dimensional spatial extension. And, as we’ve seen, there are a number of attributes that necessarily follow from this: size, location, shape, internal structure, parts, divisibility, and potential for change, which is subjection to time. Materialism is the position that all of reality is characterized by these attributes, without exception. To state this in the negative, materialism says that there is no such thing as an immaterial (non-physical) existence. There are no bodiless entities, attributes, or essences—no realities without size, location, shape, and parts. Nothing is “beyond the bounds of space and time.” All things are exclusively matter in motion. What this implies regarding the nature of truth is that truth is whatever corresponds to material reality since that is the only reality. Again, the consequences of this are far-reaching and all-encompassing since it impacts every search for truth, no matter the subject.
What I’ve stated here is simply an explanation of what materialism is. If you want to go beyond this to consider the arguments in favor of the truth of materialism, you’ll find them in some of the writings below. A good starting place is Materialism or Immaterialism?
2. Morality (this section is coming soon)
For more articles by Trent Wilde not included on this page, check out the Trent Wilde Blog.
To Everyone
Short Articles
Theories of the Basis of Morality
Material Reality as the Basis for Morality
Dirt You Are (Israelite Anthropology)
Israel’s Despiritualizing Philosophy
Cognitive Kidneys (Israelite Anthropology)
To Dirt You Will Return (Israelite Anthropology)
Resurrection: The Only Hope of Future Life
Jesus: A Purely Material Person
Who May Travel into Yahweh’s Tent?
How Can We Know Things About the Past?
Not A Bible Translation of “Psalm 1”
Cheers For The Man Who… – “Psalm 1” (NABT)
Ain’t Done Gone – “Psalm 1” (NABT)
Vaccines (Including COVID Vaccines) Are Safe and Effective
Medium Articles
Books
Q&A
What Does the Branch Davidian Message Say to Conspiracy Theories?
Poems
Miss Misinformation and Lady Learning
To Christians
Short Articles
Soul Searching: Zero Hits in Hebrew
Materialistic Theism in the Philippian Christ Hymn
Genesis 1:1 – In What Beginning?!
Yahweh’s Disappointed Expectations in Jeremiah 3
The Book of Jeremiah is a Montage
Medium Articles
What Jesus Taught About Doing Right and Wrong
What is the Spirit of Prophecy?
A Change in the Priesthood – A Change in the Law
Long Articles
Q&A
What Does it Mean for the Righteous Man to Fall Seven Times?
To Seventh-day Adventists
Short Articles
Is it “Fake” to do the Right Thing When it Doesn’t “Feel Natural”?
SDA Holy Spirit Debate Now vs Then 1
What is Trinitarianism Anyway? – SDA Holy Spirit Debate Now vs Then 2
Non-Trinitarians Who Say the Holy Spirit is A Person
Why Early SDAs Rejected Trinitarianism
Should You Use That Remedy For That Ailment?
Medium Articles
Materialism: Our Forgotten Foundation
What Happened on October 22, 1844 is Not Immaterial
Long Articles
What is the Spirit of Prophecy? (SDA Edition)
The King of Crises in the Seventh-day Adventist Church
Introduction to R. A. Underwood’s The Holy Spirit A Person
Q&A
What is the SDA Doctrine of the Personality of God?
What Did Ellen White Teach About the Personality of the Holy Spirit?
How Does Prayer Work With Materialism?
Why Are Ellen White’s Writings Called “The Spirit of Prophecy”?
To Davidians
Short Articles
Houteff Against Alternative Medicine
Medium Articles
Who Is Wisdom? (For Davidians Seeking Extra Oil)
Long Articles
The End of Davidian Quiescence
To Branches
Short Articles
Medium Articles
Present Truth Lessons from Hosea 1-3
Parables
The Parable of the Two Schools
Wisdom Sayings
The Silver Trumpet
The author is Trent Wilde unless otherwise specified.
Volume 1
No. 1
The Silver Trumpet Sounds
Ontario Trip Report by Teresa Wilde
Questions and Answers
• What Does It Mean for the Righteous Man to Fall Seven Times?
• Is Sanctification Progressive?
Personal Testimonies
• Hungry to Know and Eager to Show by Mary and Ed Zebrowski
• Rejoicing in the Gospel by Carol Hines
Health Principles
Notices
Propitiation – a poem by Rollin Cannedy
No. 2
At-One-Ment in the Sanctuary and the Root of Pollution
Land Watch Update by Teresa Wilde
Questions and Answers
• Do You Teach Salvation by Works?
• Are We to Fast on the Day of Atonement?
An Open Letter From a Burdened Heart by Teresa Wilde
Health Principles
Notices
Them Dry Bones Will Live by Doug Mitchell
No. 3
That You May Never Fall: The Butter and Honey of Your Calling and Election
Land Search Update by Teresa Wilde
Questions and Answers
• Is The Levitical Priesthood Done Away?
• Can You Provide A Summary of Ezekiel 16?
• What Does “God Is Spirit” Mean?
A Personal Testimony
• Searching for Truth to Be Set Free by Mary Zebrowski
Health Principles
Notices
Overcoming Sin – a poem by an unknown author
No. 4
The Garments of Holiness
A Goodly Land by Teresa Wilde
Questions and Answers
• Is There a Difference Between A Messenger and A Prophet?
• Where to Pay Tithe?
• What Does it Mean to Pray Without Ceasing?
A Personal Testimony
• A Marriage Restored by Analiza Allen
Health Tips by Teresa Wilde
Notices
The Garment of Praise
Nos. 5-7
Psalm 35 – The Folly of David’s Accusers: A Word for the Tempted and Tried
4 Maccabees: A Comparative Translation
The Small Beginnings of a Large Work by Trent and Teresa Wilde
Questions and Answers
• What Must I Do to be Saved?
• Is Jesus Wisdom?
A Personal Testimony
• Justification by Faith At Work by B. J.
Health Tips by Teresa Wilde
Notices
The Reason to Die
No. 8
Priesthood and Temple
Call For Laborers
Questions and Answers
• Should We Consume Oils?
• Why is Leaven Hid in Three Measures of Meal?
A Personal Testimony
• An Unbiased Perspective by D. P.
Health Tips by Teresa Wilde
Notices
Choose – a poem by Teresa Wilde
No. 9
The Detrimental Effects of Immaterialism upon Reasonable Thinking
Materialism by B. F. Robbins
Questions and Answers
• What Does “Christ In You” Mean?
• What Is Spiritualistic Interpretation?
• Did E. J. Waggoner Go Off Into Spiritualism?
Personal Testimonies
• Why Wait? by Carol Hines
• Note On Personal Testimonies
Health Tips
Notices
Immateriality
Nos. 10-11
The Graciousness of Glory
All Things Are Now Ready
Questions and Answers
• Should We Keep the Seder Meal?
• Is “Counting the Omer” Scriptural?
• When to Eat the Passover – the 14th the 15th?
• How Do We Calculate Pentecost?
Quotes of Interest
• The Nazarenes
A Personal Testimony
• Long Suspicions Confirmed by an Anonymous Commenter
Notices
I Once Passed Over You – a poem by Teresa Wilde
Nos. 12-14
The Sprouting of the Kingdom
Questions and Answers
• Was Enoch Ethiopian?
• Multiple Applications of the 430 Years?
Quotes of Interest
• E. J. Waggoner on the Bible In Public Schools
Health Resources
A Personal Testimony
• Divine Help to Promote the Truth by Rollin Cannedy
Notices
A New Song – a poem by Teresa Wilde
Nos. 15-16
The Flying Scroll
The Only Way to Life
Headquarters Update
Questions and Answers
• Who is to Call Wisdom “Sister”?
• Why “Righteousness ‘by’ Faith” and “Righteousness ‘of’ Christ”?
• What of Genesis 38:9-10
Quotes of Interest
• Ellen White on Tithe
Remembering Rollin
Notices
Now or Never – a poem by Rollin Cannedy
The Straight Testimony
2020
March 25 – Follow Me
July 22 – Do Not Let Your Heart Be Troubled
2024
April 10 – A Heart-to-Heart
