Examine the arguments, which can be used to discredit belief in miracles - In what respect do you consider belief in miracles to be strong in spite of these criticisms.

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Joanna Lowe        Page         Miss Arthur

Religious Studies – Philosophy

Miracles

Identify one philosopher and examine his/her understanding of the term miracle (6 marks)

Examine the arguments, which can be used to discredit belief in miracles. In what respect do you consider belief in miracles to be strong in spite of these criticisms (14 marks)

The topic of miracles and their existence is a controversial one due to the lack of proof of their existence and a recognised definition. Philosophers have long debated miracles, their occurrence and the necessary boundaries that should universally define events worthy of being deemed a miracle. Views upon the subject of miracles are widely varied due to diversity in religious beliefs, both theists and atheists deliberating over their existence. The problem with the assortment of perspectives is that where one group claim that God is responsible for the occurrence of a miracle, another group discard this explanation. Similarly, there is a combination of beliefs on how to define a miracle, as some people would perceive the sun stopping in the sky as a miracle, whereas others claim that the birth of child is ‘miraculous’.  

One of the most influential theologians involved in the determination of miracles and their existence in the world today, was St. Thomas Aquinas. For centuries, scholars and philosophers have deliberated not only over the existence of miracles, but that if they do exist, over what boundaries to term them within. Aquinas is one of the most recognised philosophers, who came to the conclusion that miracles, in their entirety, could be defined as “Those things…, which are done by divine power apart from the order generally followed in things.”

For Aquinas, due to his belief that God was that of an interventionist, there were three types of miracles that could take place. The first of the three kinds of miracles was determined by Aquinas as an event done by God, that nature was not capable of doing. An example in the Bible being the account of the sun being stopped in the sky, Joshua 10:13, which would be recognised by today’s standards as physically impossible. This type of miracle encompasses the types of events that cannot be logically explained and therefore are deemed a ‘natural impossibility’. The second type was recognised as events done by God that nature would be capable of accomplishing but either not as well or not in the order that they occurred, for example, the healing of paralysis as well as the narration of exorcisms in Mark 1:31 of the Bible. Although nature may very rarely be capable to heal on this kind of scale, it would be highly unanticipated and would take a very long time, whereas Jesus was known to have regularly performed miracles invariably. He would have demonstrated his healing powers to heal someone of paralysis on a much smaller time scale, which therefore could render his work as a miracle. The occurrence of exorcisms, which although would not be thought of as entirely implausible, would be seldom expected, and therefore can be reputed as miracles. The third and final type of miracle in Aquinas’s view were events done by God, which nature is quite capable of carrying out, yet God performs these types of miracles without the use of natural law. An example of this kind of miracle would be healing in the form of forgiving of sin by God, Mark 2:5. An event such as this would take place within the normal, natural order of things, however, the means by which God allows it to occur without the assistance of nature, deems it a miracle. Therefore, Aquinas thought of God as an interventionist and that when he does so, miracles occur. Due to Aquinas’s three main points, which described three individual types of events that could be termed as a miracle, it makes their existence more plausible due to a much more flexible definition.

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Although Aquinas’s principles are of high esteem, there are several criticisms of his argument, which weaken the validity of his points. Despite the fact that Aquinas proposed an adaptable definition that is appropriate in our lives today and somewhat explained the position of God as an interventionist, there are still notable faults in his argument which undermine not only the existence of miracles, but how to define them. Due to the long-running debate between philosophers and theologians alike, many insights and different perspectives on the subject of miracles have been proposed over the years. However, nearly every argument ...

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