Miracle

2016-09-15T12:06:24Z

Anney: Rewrote counter to an argument against miracles

The first '''miracle''' by [[Jesus]] was at a [[heterosexual]] [[marriage]], as described at John 2:1. The miracle of the [[Resurrection]] is perhaps recorded in the [[Shroud of Turin]].

A '''miracle''' is defined by Merriam-Webster (2009) as:

: an extraordinary event manifesting divine intervention in human affairs
: an extremely outstanding or unusual event, thing, or accomplishment
: ''Christian Science'': a divinely natural phenomenon experienced humanly as the fulfillment of spiritual law

The Catholic definition of miracle is a "sensibly perceptible effect, surpassing at least the powers of visible nature, produced by God to witness to some truth or testify to someone's sanctity."<ref>John A. Hardon, S.J., "A Modern Catholic Dictionary" (1999).</ref>

Other definitions include:

: a remarkably good event that has no plausible scientific explanation
: an extremely unlikely occurrence consistent with [[faith]] or [[prayer]]
: a joyous happening contrary to all reasonable expectation
: "a violation of the laws of nature" ([[David Hume]])

Though the term "miracle" can often be heard from Christians and non-Christians alike, the entire [[Bible]] only contains one genuine reference to "miracle" and that was a quote of a non-believer (the Pharaoh) in Exodus 7:9 (RSV): "When Pharaoh says to you, 'Prove yourselves by working a '''miracle''',' then you shall say to Aaron, 'Take your rod and cast it down before Pharaoh, that it may become a serpent.'"

Under [[Christianity]] and [[Judaism]], God is truth and a miracle is nothing more than a "sign" of the truth. "Miracle" is the non-believer's term for what believers properly describe as a "sign", a term that does appear repeatedly in the [[Bible]]. The scholar [[Chad Walsh]] echoes [[C.S. Lewis]]—''Miracles: A Preliminary Study''(1947, Macmillan)—when he states that no other religion bases its ideas upon miracles as much as does Christianity. Its foundation is the [[Incarnation]].<ref>''C.S. Lewis: Apostle to the Skeptics'', Chad Walsh, Macmillian company, 1949, page 34</ref>

== Arguments against the Existence of Miracles ==

Skeptics would say that miracles are simply improbable stuff happening and because there are billions of people on the planet, the odds of finding numerous stories of improbable happenings interpreted as miracles increases. This, however, along with many other atheistic arguments invokes a logical fallacy. However, the probability of an event that appears to be a miracle is so tiny, that even the large world population of over seven billion people, and over decades still means that there are more than can be accounted for. Hence this is not a valid explanation.

The fact is in order for a skeptic to dismiss miracles, they must literally accuse thousands upon thousands of people of either lying, or hallucinating. The probability of 100 percent of the witnesses matching this description is questionable at best. One example would be the documented miracle at Fatima where thousands of people saw the sun explode and then come back together. Skeptics argue that no one outside the area of the town recorded this but this is using the logical fallacy that absence of evidence is evidence of absence. Also, the probability of thousands of people lying needs to be called into question.

Some skeptics ask why God chooses not to cure amputees but this begins with the false assumption that God has never done this before. The fact is Jesus is historically documented in the Bible as reattaching an ear to a Roman soldier. Also, many of the lepers that Jesus chose to cure also had missing body parts. The amputee argument also ignores how losing a limb is not life-threatening. Also, if God chose to cure everyone then no one would ever die and God needs people to die so they can either be placed in Heaven or Hell. Another counter is that the amputee argument ignores the fact that God has inspired doctors to develop the technology for artificial limbs.
=== Studies confirming the efficacy of prayer for Christians ===

The Christian apologist [[Gary Habermas]] wrote: "Double-blind prayer experiments: where people pray for others with terminal illness. Habermas admitted that most such experiments have not worked, but the three that he knows of that have indeed worked were cases of orthodox-Christians praying for the sick."<ref>[http://www.christianpost.com/news/christian-apologist-10-reasons-for-the-fall-of-atheism-106531/ Christian Apologist: 10 Reasons for the Fall of Atheism] by [[Gary Habermas]]</ref>

==List of miracles approved by the [[Congregation for the Causes of Saints]]==
*Stigmata (and other signs) of [[St. Francis of Assisi]]
*Prophecies and miraculous apparitions of [[Saint Bernadette|St. Bernadette]]
*Apparition of the [[Mary|Blessed Virgin Mary]] at Fatima on the 13th day of six consecutive months in 1917, starting on 13 May.
*Stigmata, bilocation, levitation and prophecy of [[Padre Pio|St. Pio of Pietrelcina]] (born Francesco Frocione)
*Blood miracle of [[St. Januarius]] (also known as St. Gennaro)
*The Virgin of the tears: 1953, Syracuse (Sicily) - A statue of the Virgin Mary produces real human tears.

== Atheists and supernatural beliefs ==

''See also:'' [[Atheists and supernatural beliefs]]

[[Atheism]], as defined by the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the ''[[Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy]]'', and other [[philosophy]] reference works, is the denial of the existence of [[God]].<ref>Multiple references:
*Smart, J. J. C. (August 8, 2011). [http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/atheism-agnosticism "Atheism and agnosticism"]. ''The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' (Spring 2013 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.).
*Sarfati, Jonathan, Ph.D. (23 June 2007). [http://creation.com/atheism-is-more-rational "Atheism is more rational?"]. See [[Creation Ministries International]], [[Jonathan Sarfati]].
*Day, Donn R. (2007). [http://www.thedivineconspiracy.org/athart3.htm "Atheism - etymology"].
*[http://www.reasonablefaith.org/definition-of-atheism Definition of atheism] by [[William Lane Craig]]
*[http://www.iclnet.org/pub/resources/text/cri/cri-jrnl/web/crj0131a.html Putting the Atheist on the Defensive] by Kenneth R. Samples, Christian Research Institute Journal, Fall 1991, and Winter 1992, page 7.
</ref> Beginning in the latter portion of the 20th century and continuing beyond, many [[agnosticism|agnostics]]/atheists have argued that the [[definition of atheism]] should be defined as a mere lack of belief in God or gods.
<ref name="Divine">Day, Donn R. (2007). [http://www.thedivineconspiracy.org/athart3.htm "Atheism - etymology"].</ref><ref>[http://www.reasonablefaith.org/definition-of-atheism Definition of atheism] by [[William Lane Craig]]</ref>
<ref name="CRI">[http://www.iclnet.org/pub/resources/text/cri/cri-jrnl/web/crj0131a.html Putting the Atheist on the Defensive] by Kenneth R. Samples, Christian Research Institute Journal, Fall 1991, and Winter 1992, page 7.</ref> See also: [[Definition of atheism]]

[[Naturalism (philosophy)|Naturalism]] as a philosophical stance rejects the possibility of [[supernatural]] phenomena, describing such phenomena as misunderstood natural phenomena or falsehood. This preconception necessarily precludes the existence of God.

Although all [[Atheism|atheists]] deny the existence of [[God]], a significant portion of atheists do not strictly subscribe to the philosophy of naturalism (see: [[Atheism and the supernatural]]).

==See also==
*[[In the midst of a Maelstrom: the Holy Spirit and silence: an essay]] the quiet miracle
*[[Essay: How to "get" a church]]

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Christian Theology]]

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Miracle