Key Words Miracle: a seemingly impossible occurrence, usually good Laws of nature: descriptions of how scientists expect nature to work Tradition: 1) Something that has been done for a very long time and is therefore thought to be true 2) Long established beliefs or customs Immanence: the idea that God is present in and involved with life on earth and in the universe Benevolence: goodness, being all-loving Omnipotence: almighty, unlimited power Omniscience: the quality of knowing everything (as applied to God.) Transcendence: the idea that God is beyond and outside life on Earth and the universe Miracles Theists use the term miracle to refer to an event performed by God that appears to break the laws of nature. Buddhists do not believe in God and think that everything happens through cause and effect (karma.) There is a debate within Buddhism as to whether miracles occur at all. The miracle of the milk-drinking statue On 21 st September 1995, a miracle happened at a Hindu temple in India that was shown on television throughout the world. The events began when a Hindu man dreamed that the god, Ganesha, wanted a drink of milk. He went to his local temple and told the priest, who offered a spoonful of milk to the mouth of the stone image of Ganesha. To their surprise the milk disappeared. News spread throughout India of the event and people came from all over. Whenever a spoonful of milk was offered to the image, the milk disappeared. The event was filmed and shown worldwide on television. Types of miracles 1) Miracles that break the laws of nature e.g. Christians and Jews accept a miracle linked to the Israelite leader, Joshua, in which the sun stands still. The sun standing still is not a natural occurrence. According to the book of Joshua, God made the sun stand still at Joshua s request, to give the Jews time to defeat their enemies in battle 2) Happy coincidences. These types of miracle do not break the laws of nature, but a coincidence occurs at exactly the right time to bring about a good outcome. It is a coincidence when two people say the same thing at the same time, or turn up wearing the same outfit to a party, but it is not a miracle. For a coincidence to be a miracle some misfortune has to be prevented or some good achieved. An example is the miracle of stairwell B, in which 16 people survived the collapse of the North Tower of the World Trade Center. 3) Miracles are acts of God. Many people believe that miracles can only be performed by God because only God is outside time and space, and therefore not limited by the laws of nature. If people perform miracles, then most religious believers think it is because God is working through them. Muslims accept the miracles of Jesus but they believe that it was God working through Jesus, and not Jesus himself, who performed them. Does God work through miracles? No - Buddhists and atheists would agree that God does not work in the world through miracles because Buddhists and atheists do not believe in God. This does not mean that Buddhists reject the concept of miracles, but they do not accept that miracles are the result of an action by God. Christians believe that God works in the world directly through miracles. They believe that Jesus performed miracles that showed the power or love of God, or revealed that Jesus was God in human form. Jesus miracles included walking on water, healing the sick and raising from the dead Muslims believe that only Allah can perform miracles. No human can perform miracles, but Allah can work through individuals to perform miracles. Allah performed miracles through all the prophets, to prove
that they were chosen by Allah. Muslims accept Jesus as a prophet and that Allah performed miracles through Jesus to show that Jesus was chosen by him. The greatest miracle in Islam is the living Qur an Can humans perform miracles? The majority of religious believers think that if humans do perform miracles, then it is only because God is working through them. Other believers think it is possible for humans to perform miracles without God s intervention. Buddhists who accept that miracles happen think they are performed by humans. However, many Buddhists do not believe that there are such things as miracles. They argue that what is happening is not a miracle but evidence that our knowledge about the world is incomplete. For example, in the past, illness was thought to be caused by evil spirits or punishment for sin, but today causes of disease are generally understood. Other Buddhists agree that miracles are outside what we observe and know about nature, but believe that they occur through the power of the human mind. They believe that through meditation and leading a moral life, an individual can develop miraculous powers. The Buddha had these powers he was able to see in several places at once, fly through the air, hear things over long distances, read people s minds, walk on hot coals and remember past lives. The ability of a human to perform miracles is not proof that the person is holy. For Buddhists, the purpose of miracles is to benefit others by encouraging them to seek enlightenment because miracles demonstrate what can be achieved what can be achieved developing the powers of the mind. Christianity, Islam and Judaism These three religions argue that humans can perform miracles, but only because God works through them. A human is unable to perform miracles without God s help. Some Christians believe that Jesus could perform miracles because he was God on earth in human form. Other Christians believe that because Jesus was closer to God than any other human being, God worked through him as through others, but to a much greater extent. Muslims and Jews believe that only Allah/God can perform miracles, although he may perform them through his chosen prophets. Examples of miracles from scripture, tradition, history and personal experience Tradition Miracles in Buddhism are mainly linked to the traditions associated with the Buddha e.g. the Buddha tames an elephant Scripture In Islam, the scripture is a living miracle as it is the direct guide from Allah to each individual, regardless of who they are. Within the scripture there are miracles, many of which are also found in the Christian New Testament associated with Jesus. History Miracles linked to the founders of religions may be considered miracles from history. In all the religions, there are many events throughout history, after their scriptures were written, that are thought to have been miracles. Miracles associated with Varanasi, this is one of the most important places of pilgrimage for Hindus. Personal Experience People are most convinced of the existence of miracles by extraordinary events that they experience or see for themselves. One of the ways in which people have such an experience is through faith healing. In some religions, there are acts of worship that include faith healing, or it may be that believers go on pilgrimage to sacred places in the hope of a cure e.g. Lourdes Evidence of and for miracles Evidence of: evidence of miracles occurring, to show proof Evidence for: reasons for accepting miracles, strengthens their faith
Many see miracles happening e.g. Ganesha drinking milk seen on television Evidence OF Miracles occuring Effect miracle has on person e.g. healing of John Rajah Miracles associated with founders of religions - seen by many people. Evidence for accepting miracles: Too many accounts for at least some of them not to have happened Not just events from past, happen today Many been investigated and no scientific explanation can be found Miracles performed by founders of religions and other holy people convince people to convert to, and even die for, the religion. If the miracles were not genuine, these people would not have become followers of the religion There have been several research programmes into the power of prayer to heal. The results support the belief that prayer helps to cure people. Power of miracles in revealing God Benevolence Muslims believe that God s love for his creation is shown through the miracle of the Qur an as a guide on how to live as God wishes. Christians believe God s love is shown through miraculous events linked to Jesus e.g. resurrection. Healing miracles shows God s love. Immanence Miracles show God is active in the world. Christians believe that God came into the world as Jesus to save them and that the miracles Jesus performed are evidence of this. Omnipotent Miracles believed to break the laws of nature show that God is able to interfere with the natural workings of the world e.g. sun standing still in Joshua. Miracles show that God s power is not limited. Omniscient Miracles that occur as the result of happy coincidence could demonstrate that God is all-knowing. God knows when it is necessary to act to bring about a good outcome. Transcendence Miracles are events that cannot be scientifically explained. If it is believed that the miracles are performed by God, then it is further evidence that God is beyond human understanding. Miracles causing problems for believers? God might not perform Miracles could give the miracles the miracle-worker too much status Miracles make God s behaviour seem unfair Problems of miracles Doubt that God would intervene to upset the world he established, having given people free will and the potential to develop scientific knowledge The belief that God is transcendent the idea that God is beyond and outside life on Earth and the universe
Area of conflict Problem explained Response/solution to the problem God might not perform the miracles No proof caused by God.Buddhists believe that is possible for some people to perform actions that could be described as miraculous. Could be evil force causing miracle. A miracle could never be the result of evil. Jesus himself made this point in one of his parables. Give miracleworker too much importance Make God s behaviour seem unfair God is transcendent Hume s Argument Against Miracles The miracle could give the miracle-worker status and fame, and God s message could be lost. Some religious believers worry that miracles imply that God is unfair because he picks and chooses who to help and who to ignore. For many believers, this goes against the belief in a loving, just God. One person might be cured from cancer by a miracle, while another is left to die. If God is outside time and space, it is not possible for God to act in the world. It is easy to differentiate between an individual working for God and someone seeking to gain money and fame. The one chosen by God would not seek fame or wealth. Believers who accept that God does perform miracles think that what is learned from the miracles is as important as the individuals who were helped. The main reason miracles happen is to strengthen faith. Many miracles, such as the Resurrection of Jesus or Muhammad receiving the Qur an, are for the benefit of everyone Believers who accept miracles would reply that it is possible for God to be outside time and space and still work in the world, especially as God often works through people. They would say that God is both transcendent and immanent. 1. Never enough evidence Hume argued that if a miracle is going to be accepted, then there has to be sufficient evidence to outweigh the evidence for the law of nature. This cannot happen, so it is always going to be more likely that miracles do not happen. 2. The witnesses are unreliable Evidence of the witnesses to miracles cannot be trusted because they are biased they desperately want miracles to happen to back up their beliefs, so they may exaggerate or even lie about what they have seen. The same is true of those who spread accounts of miracles. 3. The witnesses are uneducated Hume said that miracles are usually reported by primitive, uneducated people. This means that they are willing to accept extraordinary events as miracles because they have no other explanation for them; they have no knowledge of science. 4. Religions depend on miracles Hume argued that the religions of the world depend on miracles to prove their claims to be the truth but, as they cannot all be right, then it means none of them are right. Religions therefore cancel each other out. Arguments against Hume s view 1. Never enough evidence A miracle is something that breaks the law of nature but is a rare occurence. Miracles are the exception to the rule so there can never be more witnesses to miracles than the laws of nature. Based on Hume s argument, the existence of flight cannot be accepted because, until 1903, no one had seen anyone fly in an aeroplane. Does this mean that because more people through history have believed flight could not happen, it has actually not happened? 2. The witnesses are unreliable Founders of religions warn of the dangers of putting too much trust in niracles, and stress that they must be viewed with great care before being accepted. For example, the Roman Catholic Church thoroughly investigates each claim at Lourdes before it is accepted as a miracle. 3. The witnesses are uneducated This is a difficult reason for most people to accept, even if they are not religious, as they know most nations have recorded the occurence of miracles, regardless of their level of education. 4. Religions depend on miracles Hume suggested that all religions depend on miracles for evidence of their teachings and existence of God. This is not true. In the religions that accept miracles, they mostly just support the beliefs and teachings of the faith. Many religions do not depend on miracles as proof of their teachings. Nor are religions in competition with regard to their miracles.