Based on the writings of Ellen White, there is no specific numerical age given as the "right age" to be in a relationship. Instead, the focus is on maturity, preparation, and the development of mental and physical powers. Her counsel repeatedly warns against premature relationships and early marriages, viewing them as unwise and often leading to unhappiness. ### Key Principles on Readiness for a Relationship: * **Maturity Over Age:** The primary consideration is not a person's age but their level of maturity. She states that a relationship leading to marriage "should not be entered upon hastily, without sufficient preparation, and before the mental and physical powers are well developed" (MH 358.1). * **Warning Against Teen Relationships:** She strongly advises against relationships in the teenage years, describing them as being based on immaturity and passion rather than sound judgment. * "A youth not out of his teens is a poor judge of the fitness of a person, as young as himself, to be his companion for life" (SA 52.1). * "Boys and girls enter upon the marriage relation with unripe love, immature judgment, without noble, elevated feelings, and take upon themselves the marriage vows, wholly led by their boyish, girlish, passions" (ApM 7.1). * **Restraint of Affections:** Young people are counseled to restrain their affections until they are mature enough to make a wise choice. "The young affections should be restrained until the period arrives when sufficient age and experience will make it honorable and safe to unfetter them" (SA 52.1). * **Parental Guidance:** The importance of seeking guidance from experienced, God-fearing parents is emphasized, contrasting with the modern idea that choosing a partner is a matter for the individual alone (PP 171.2). In summary, Ellen White does not define a "right age" but rather a "right stage" of life, which is characterized by spiritual, mental, and emotional maturity, sufficient life experience, and the ability to make a sound, rather than impulsive, decision.