As far as extant records indicate, all tithe funds which passed through Mrs. White’s hands about the turn of the century were delivered to a recognized agency of the Seventh-day Adventist Church—in this case the Southern Missionary Society—or to workers who were sponsored or endorsed by the church leadership. None of Ellen White’s tithe is known to have gone to an independent agency or to a self-supporting worker not under the direct umbrella of the church. EGWCPT 14.2
While the Southern Missionary Society was, for all practical purposes, a self-supporting organization, yet it was founded and continued to function “under the instruction of, and bearing the credentials of, the General Conference.” 39“James Edson White,” Seventh-day Adventist Encyclopedia, 1976 ed., p. 1598; “Southern Missionary Society,” ibid., p. 1396 In giving a portion of her tithe to the Southern Missionary Society Ellen White was giving to an enterprise officially approved by the General Conference. EGWCPT 14.3