Arthur Kent White (March 15, 1889 – September 16, 1981) was a

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

, and the general superintendent of the

Pillar of Fire Church The Pillar of Fire International, also known as the Pillar of Fire Church, is a Methodist Christianity, Christian denomination with headquarters in Zarephath, New Jersey. The Pillar of Fire Church affirms the Articles of Religion (Methodist), Meth ...

Zarephath, New Jersey Zarephath (, ) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) and located in Franklin Township, in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States, about north of Princeton.Belleview College The Westminster Castle, also locally known as "The Pillar of Fire" is a historic landmark located in Westminster, Colorado, northwest of Denver near the intersection of 83rd and Federal. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places a ...

. The church was started by his mother,

Alma Bridwell White Alma Bridwell White (June 16, 1862 – June 26, 1946) was the founder and a bishop of the Pillar of Fire Church. In 1918, she became the first woman bishop of Pillar of Fire in the United States. She was a proponent of feminism. She also ass ...

, in

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

Biography

He was born in

, in 1889 to Alma Bridwell and Kent White (1860–1940), and he had a brother,

Ray Bridwell White Ray Bridwell White (August 24, 1892 – November 5, 1946) was the son of Alma White, the leader of the Pillar of Fire Church in Zarephath, New Jersey. He was nominated to be a Bishop shortly after his mother died in 1946, but was too ill to a ...

. Arthur attended and graduated from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

with an

A.B. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in 1915. He later attended and graduated from

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...

, and he received an honorary

Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ran ...

from

Alma White College Alma White College was a Bible college in Zarephath, New Jersey from 1921 to 1978. It was an institution of the Pillar of Fire Church. The academic institution is now succeeded by Pillar College. History In June 1917 an elderly German professor ...

in 1927. He married

Kathleen Merrell White Kathleen Merell White (née Staats; November 25, 1889 – April 1, 1973) was an American minister, author, and senior leader in the Pillar of Fire Church, a Protestant denomination founded in 1901 by Bishop Alma White, Kathleen's mother-in-law. ...

in 1914, and had the following children: Arlene White (1916–1990), who married Jerry Lawrence, and was a bishop at

Zarephath, New Jersey Zarephath (, ) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) and located in Franklin Township, in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States, about north of Princeton.Robert Barney Dallenbach Robert Barney Dallenbach (born August 6, 1927) is a bishop in the Pillar of Fire International. He also was the church's fifth general superintendent until losing a vote of confidence at the 2008 Pillar of Fire annual camp meeting convention. He ...

, in

. White was president of

from 1921 to 1971. He became president of

Belleview College The Westminster Castle, also locally known as "The Pillar of Fire" is a historic landmark located in Westminster, Colorado, northwest of Denver near the intersection of 83rd and Federal. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places a ...

and then director of the

Alma Bible College The Pillar of Fire International, also known as the Pillar of Fire Church, is a Methodist Christianity, Christian denomination with headquarters in Zarephath, New Jersey. The Pillar of Fire Church affirms the Articles of Religion (Methodist), Meth ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. He also headed the Pillar of Fire missions in

Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...

. He wrote at least seven books. His wife died on April 1, 1973, and he remarried. He died on September 16, 1981, at his home in

Zarephath, New Jersey Zarephath (, ) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) and located in Franklin Township, in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States, about north of Princeton.Alma White Alma Bridwell White (June 16, 1862 – June 26, 1946) was the founder and a bishop of the Pillar of Fire Church. In 1918, she became the first woman bishop of Pillar of Fire in the United States. She was a proponent of feminism. She also ass ...

and Lillian O. Bridwell
The Harp of Gold
(1911) with

Alma White Alma Bridwell White (June 16, 1862 – June 26, 1946) was the founder and a bishop of the Pillar of Fire Church. In 1918, she became the first woman bishop of Pillar of Fire in the United States. She was a proponent of feminism. She also ass ...

*A Toppling Idol - evolution (1933) *The Boys Made Good and Other Sermons (1936) reprinted in 1952 *Cross & Crown Hymnal:

(1943) *Introduction to

Guardians of Liberty Guardians of Liberty is a three volume set of books published in 1943 by Bishop Alma Bridwell White, author of over 35 books and founder of the Pillar of Fire Church. Guardians of Liberty is primarily devoted to summarizing White's vehement anti- ...

: Volumes Two and Three (1943) *Some White Family History (1948) *Protestant Ideals (1951) *Your Alabaster Box and Other Sermons (1961) *Crusading Christian Women (1963)

Quotes

From his introduction to ''

'', Vol. II, 1943 by Bishop

Adolf Hitler in ''Mein Kampf'', so vicious and Machiavellian in character, plainly told a stupid world what he intended to do, and Rome, through her many pronouncements, encyclical letters, and preachments, has declared in unmistakable terms her prerogatives, boasting the right to rule over the souls of men, not only in the church, but in the state.

Mother quotes again and again from the authenticated Roman Catholic sources. She feels her mission is to inform a Liberty-loving people of hierarchical purposes and ambition. Totalitarianism never originated with an Austrian peasant; it is centuries old. The most foolish thing that we can do is to take liberty for granted. Just as the human body must constantly contend with disease germs from the cradle to the grave, so liberty must wage a constant, everlasting battle against the foes that would destroy it.

If the author is plain-spoken, if she goes direct to the point, if she does not hedge, anyone who reads these lectures, who takes the time to study the authorities quoted, will most certainly be convinced that she has ample reasons to call a spade a spade, for the reasons have arisen, not through ''prejudice or bigotry'', but from Rome’s own official statements and established dogmas.

We cannot afford to sleep. Our safety lies in keeping informed and in eternal vigilance. Every truth-loving citizen should take the time and trouble to learn the facts and pledge himself to be an un-swerving, uncompromising, untiring, 100-per cent Protestant, and a faithful “Guardian of Liberty.”

"Guardian of Liberty" was a euphemism for a member of the

Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to the KKK or the Klan, is an American white supremacist, right-wing terrorist, and hate group whose primary targets are African Americans, Jews, Latinos, Asian Americans, Native Americans, and ...

. ---- From ''

The Good Citizen ''The Good Citizen'' was a sixteen-page monthly political periodical edited by Bishop Alma White and illustrated by Reverend Branford Clarke. ''The Good Citizen'' was published from 1913 until 1933 by the Pillar of Fire Church at their hea ...

'' 1923. Bishop White uses what he calls the “privilege” of slavery to help illustrate his argument that when some liberties are granted, other liberties are often lost:

At one time in our national history the holding of slaves was permissible under the laws. The abuse of this privilege began seriously to menace the peace of the entire country. Though many plausible arguments were presented by a minority on the subject of personal liberty for our white citizenry, and Biblical ones, even, for the continuance of the old regime, slavery was nevertheless abolished.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:White, Arthur Kent 1889 births 1981 deaths Columbia University alumni Pillar of Fire International Princeton University alumni American bishops Critics of the Catholic Church American Christian creationists