Suppose someone wanted to criticize James White on a particular point. For example, let’s say someone wanted to question the authenticity of James White’s so-called “academic” doctoral” degree (And, understand: it perhaps needs to be questioned if White is going to insist on gloating about all his academic accomplishments). So, if one wanted to question his doctoral degree’s worth, perhaps we could link to this , this , this, and this. I mean, why not? White seems to have no reservation in citing Muslim hate sites as evidence to tarnish Caner, sites known to hate him. And, surely none of the sites above could be considered that bad, could they?
Also, we could tap sites that have the same value in posting other people’s emails, a practice White regularly employs. Indeed we easily found a site which likes to post White’s emails, some emails of which he failed to post on his own site. Perhaps he got spanked a little too hard to post all the rebuttals his critics offered. Whatever the case, from my reading, James White may be the whiniest kid on the block in many of the exchanges. The reader can be the judge (//link).
Gosh, we could even get pictures of his seminary where he got his “academic” doctoral degree (hardly the kind of seminary most of the readers attended, however)—a tiny office the size of a dorm room. Note on this same set of pictures posted by another critic of James White, White complains that the critic used Mormons as sources for the picture evidence (//link) The irony is hilarious! White does not appreciate using attack sources against him anymore than Caner appreciated White using attack sources. Fair is fair, DR White!
In attempting to put a critic in his place for not consulting him before posting some challenges to his “academic” doctoral degree, White had the audacity to whine: “Generally, most folks take the time to make sure of their facts before attacking someone's work, that's all. Again, possibly I follow a code of behavior that is old and passe? I mean, my e-mail address was well known to you. It would have been fairly easy, if, of course, you wanted the "whole story" (//link).
Hence, James White (and Tom Ascol) may trample Caner in the mud by allegedly “exposing” him as a “fake Muslim” using an Islamic hate/attack site, but when a Mormon educator challenges the authenticity of White’s “academic” doctoral degree, White whines about breaking a “code of behavior.”
Also, we could link to evidence which suggests James White was listed in the handbook of the seminary from which he graduated (CES) as faculty holding an academic doctorate before he actually got the “academic” doctorate! (//link). Could such a listing, if true, be viewed as fraud? I don’t know. I’d have to think about that before I made the accusation. One thing is for sure: James White is pretty touchy about calling him “Dr.” White (//link).
In fact, White routinely puts people in their respectful place who question him. Usually it's down at least a few notches lower than he is. Contrasting the notorious Tex Marrs as being under the spiritual authority of no one, White reminds his readers:
"He [Tex Marrs] is a loner, not under the authority of a local church or elders, unaccountable to God-ordained authority. As for me (and the question is honestly asked, in light of what I just said), I am a member of the Phoenix Reformed Baptist Church, under the authority of the eldership of that local assembly" (//link)
Interesting Elder White should bring that up. Surf over to White's church's eldership and one finds just what "under the authority of the eldership" means to James White. The eldership appears to be a board of two: James White and the pastor (//link). With an arrangement like that, I can see how James White is definitively placed "under authority" of the "God-ordained" eldership of "that local assembly" alright. What do you think?
In addition, this whole idea of receiving a master of theology degree for writing a book is fascinating (//link). I have written a book. Could I get a degree for my writing it?
Even more, supposedly White’s doctoral dissertation was also another book—The Forgotten Trinity. Dr. Caner surely took the wrong route. He’s written I think close to twenty books, which apparently equals, in White’s educational tract, a whopping 20 “academic” degrees!
Not only so, apparently White’s “academic” doctorate is far superior to standard academic doctoral degrees. At least that’s what I hear him arguing. Though it is a bit confusing attempting to wade through all the verbiage, the way I understand it is, James White’s book, The King James Only Controversy, was not written as a popularized version of his master of theology thesis—a common phenomenon in academic circles—rather The King James Only Controversy was his master of theology thesis. In other words, for writing the book, White received his master of theology degree which, of course, is highly uncommon in academic circles.
But to hear White explain it, the uncommon practice of receiving a degree based on writing a book is far superior to the way virtually the entire academic world views it now.
His reasoning?
Since common academic practice only allows for perhaps “a half dozen” people to critically evaluate one's thesis, White contrasts such a woefully inadequate method by writing, “My Th.M. thesis has been read by multiplied thousands…” (//link). Really? The King James Only Controversy has been read by multiplied thousands?
I know I’m a fish out of water except down home on the country farm, but that sounds pretty amazing to me—multiplied thousands. Multiplied thousands have read James White’s book, The King James Only Controversy (his master of theology thesis)?
Grab and pencil and do some scribbling:
Even though White said multiplied thousands (plural), I want to be conservative. So let’s do some figuring: 1,000 x 1,000 = 1,000,000. Has White’s The KJO Controversy sold a mil? I don't know. The first copyright was 1995. That's 15 years ago. So, 1,000,000 / 15 = 66,666 (ouch!) copies on average per year. Or, 66,666 / 365 = 182.6 copies sold per day, every day since 1995. I’d say White’s theory, if true, is superior!
But wait!
White did not mean multiplied thousands had bought his thesis but explicitly stated multiplied thousands had read his thesis. O.K. Fine. How does White know multiplied thousands (at least one million people) have read his thesis since 1995? Unless I am mistaken, there appears a wee bit of boastful stretching taking place here concerning the popularity of White’s thesis. Is James White, therefore, a fraud? I don’t know. I’d have to think long and hard before I made an accusation like that.
And, unfortunately for James White, we could read the absolute tail-paddling he received when he attempted to defend his “academic” degree (//link). One has to laugh when he or she reads the fearless, unflinching warrior from Geneva getting the intellectual fool beat out of him by a Mormon educator (//link). White, in fact, tucked his tail, and ran for cover, citing his well worn mantra in the apologetic world, that if, after reading all his books (or in some cases, his master and doctoral theses), listening to all his dozens of debates, and engaging his scholarly, original contributions to Christianity, “you wish to engage in ‘genuine dialogue,’ please let me know” (//link, link, link).
