The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a Christian denomination distinguished by their doctrinal beliefs that the literal, visible Second Coming of Christ is close at hand, and that the Sabbath of the Old Testament is still relevant today and is God's true biblical Sabbath. Seventh-day Adventist beliefs state they are based solely on scripture, "Scripture is a road map. The Bible is God's voice, speaking His love personally to you today." The denomination grew out of the Millerite movement in the United States during the middle part of the 19th century, and was formally established in 1863. Among its founders was Ellen G. White, whose extensive writings are still held in high regard by the church today.
While its critics regard it as a sectarian movement, the Seventh-day Adventist church is closely aligned to Protestantism. Its theology is Protestant in character, albeit with a number of unique teachings. These include a belief in the unconscious state of the dead and the doctrine of an investigative judgment. While many of their beliefs are rooted in Hebrew and Christian prophetism, and messianism, Seventh-day Adventists also share many of the basic beliefs held by other Protestant Christians; such as the authority of the Old and New Testaments, human choice, Christ is the only way to gain salvation, communion, and baptism.