"BY DEFINITION MIRACLES DO NOT OCCUR" DISCUSS

"BY DEFINITION MIRACLES DO NOT OCCUR" DISCUSS. Tom McKeown. Even in this modern age, belief in the miraculous is widespread and is a feature of many world religions, including the Christian faith where miracles have played a significant role. It is important attempt to define what a miracle is, as this in itself is a source for debate. Today the term 'miracle' in many different ways and the idea is open to many interpretations. A miracle can be defined in a number of ways, firstly as an unexpected change for the better. This centres miracles in people's treatment of each other, not necessarily demanding the idea of a creator God, although it can be interpreted as being God's action (here a change can be deemed as a miracle by one, whereas another might not). This is the only type of miracle that an anti-realist (e.g. Moore, Sutherland etc) could believe in. in as we use the word is used in many different ways and is open to many interpretations. Miracles can also be defined as Religiously Significant 'natural' Events, where a believer interprets an event of being of Religious significance, perhaps rare events like a total eclipse, or more common one's such as a rainbow. Events such as these could be caused by God, either in accordance with natural laws or brought about through another person. Philosopher John Hick believes that many O.T miracles were probably natural

  • Word count: 1747
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Religious Studies (Philosophy & Ethics)
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Hume now goes on to say that we can never for certain know that miracles do exist

'Belief in miracles is a necessary condition of being a Christian In the following, I will point out the ideas and facts that disagree with Hume's belief. The idea of Christians believing in the Bible and that miracle have people understand the Bible as Hume does, then Christians must believe in miracles. Hume tackles Christianity directly by stating that without miracles Christianity would not stand. . He states that miracles help Christians understand what they believe, but the belief and faith are deeper. Miracles and parables helped people believe and understand what was to be our faith, but they are not what faith is about. You can take any miracle, and faith will still exist. Miracles are also becoming more understood. There is thought that Hume presents, some miracles are in themselves tricks of nature, such as the splitting of the Red Sea. At a time of extreme low tide one can cross, and that the Egyptian army sank because of the mud or their heavy armour they were loaded with. There are bodies and armour found underneath the Red Sea that is Roman and there exists evidence of this being the cause of it. Hume says that miracles are the defiance or the breaking of the rules of nature. In his explanation, the lifting of a house or mountain is just as big a miracle, as is the lifting of a feather by the wind. As stated, in this Hume is possibly correct, that

  • Word count: 1092
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Religious Studies (Philosophy & Ethics)
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Do Miracles Still Happen?

Do Miracles Still Happen? When bringing the existence of miracles into question it is necessary to firstly establish a definition of a miracle and exactly what purpose they serve. As with many issues, theologians are divided on an actual definition of what a miracle really is. Paul Tillich (1886-1965) claimed that: "A genuine miracle is first of all an event which is astonishing, unusual, Shaking without contradicting the rational structure of reality. In the second place it is an event which points to the mystery of being, expressing its relation to us in a definite way." However, some interpret miracles as simply "a series of myths" (David Friedrich Struass). There is, however, no doubt that with miracles comes "an awareness of God", as they must always involve faith. The subject of miracles can often be the deciding point as to whether people believe in God or not. It must be noted that although many believers in God may be predisposed to believe in miracles, non-believers in God can also be predisposed against miracles, therefore it is recommended that a balance between a "superstitious understanding" and a "mechanical scientific outlook" must be achieved in order to diminish any possibility of bias. One point of view is that miracles "possess evidential value", miracles such as the resurrection of Christ (John 20) and the miracles performed by Moses in Exodus 7-11.

  • Word count: 900
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Religious Studies (Philosophy & Ethics)
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Luke's Gospel - Miracles

GCSE Coursework: Luke's Gospel - Miracles Section A (i) The definition of a miracle is: An event or effect contrary to the established constitution and course of things, or a deviation from the known laws of nature; a supernatural event, or one transcending the ordinary laws by which the universe is governed. However, other definitions claim that a miracle is simply 'a wonderful or amazing event'. Today we use the term miracle colloquially to mean the latter, however traditionally the first definition is technically more correct. Luke portrays Jesus as a worker of miracles, and tells us of the many miracles that Jesus performed. Luke, being a doctor and a gentile, tends to focus on healing stories and outcasts. He tells us of various people being healed, resulting in them being accepted back into the community. Section C It is hard to say whether healing miracles happen today. As I said in section A, there are two main differing definitions of what is meant by the term 'miracle', which it what makes it difficult to decide either way. Christians today would say that if they have prayed and asked God to cure a particular person and they are cured, then it is indeed a miracle. Their prayers for that person's health have been answered so they look upon this as a miracle. Now whether this is technically correct is debateable. By some definitions a miracle must 'be an event

  • Word count: 1274
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Religious Studies (Philosophy & Ethics)
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What is a miracle?

What is a miracle? This is a very common question asked by many people and this essay will analyze and define a miracle. Many people believe in miracles and yet again many people don't. David Hume, a famous Scottish philosopher has defined a miracle as "A miracle is a violation of the laws of nature". My definition of a miracle is "an unnatural event that takes place and has no scientific explanation and cannot be proved in any way" An example of a claimed miracle is the revelation of the Qur'an. The Qur'an was first revealed to a Muslim, Prophet Mohammed (P.B.U.H). He wasn't a statesman, a preacher or an orator. He was never seen discussing the principles of metaphysics, ethics, law, politics, economics or sociology. He was a person with an excellent character, charming manners and was highly cultured even though he didn't know how to read or write. One day when Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) came out of cave Hira, he had developed all the qualities that are listed above and was carrying a message for all the people. He claimed to be Allah's messenger and started to recite verses from the Qur'an. He slowly revealed the Qur'an to mankind. Many people thought that he was crazy and begged him to stop preaching his religion and they were offering the whole lands riches and they were also offering him the kings' throne. Prophet Mohammad (P.B.U.H) didn't accept his peoples tempting

  • Word count: 943
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Religious Studies (Philosophy & Ethics)
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What is a miracle according to the bible-Luke?

What is a miracle according to the bible-Luke? * The power of God. Jesus tells the paralysed man that his sins are forgiven something only God can do. Also the healing that has taken place is not just the physical healing but that of his relationship with God. * The power of faith in God. When the centurion's servant was healed it was vital that the centurion believed that Jesus was the son of God and so had the power to heal. Jesus' miracles helped people to have faith and to believe in the kingdom of God. * The depth of God's love. When Jesus brought the widow's son back to life it was a show (example) of God's love. The miracles showed people something of the power of God's love for them. So for Luke the miracles were vitally important they were signs of the kingdom of God and of God's infinite power and love. People use the word miracle in many different ways. Was the mission to the moon a miracle or technology, is the birth of a baby a miracle, would cloning a person be a miracle? The dictionary defines the word miracle as being 'something that cannot be explained by rational means'. However there are many things that we can explain today (space flight, television, the movement of the planets etc..) that could not have been explained 50, 100 or 200 years ago and there may be things that we cannot explain today that will be explained in 50, 100 or 200 years. So are

  • Word count: 763
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Religious Studies (Philosophy & Ethics)
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Discuss the meaning of healing miracles with reference to present day belief and Christian life.

Discuss the meaning of healing miracles with reference to present day belief and Christian life. Healing miracles are ones where a person is cured, instantly from a long-term sickness, for example, that have them in a wheelchair, bed bound, or terminally ill (not just the flu). It is considered to be a miracle cure when they have been suffering from a disease, for example, tuberculosis or multiple sclerosis for several years. Many of the things that Jesus did according to Luke affect the lives of Christians today. Luke shows Jesus as a friend to outcasts and he heals those, who, at the time were considered unclean, such as when he healed the ten lepers he not only healed them, but touched them also. He placed a special emphasis on women who were treated as second-class citizens, for example when he healed the lady with the haemorrhage; she was considered an outcast as well. Jesus gave priority to the sick and so do people today. Every hospital has at least one Chaplin to the sick, they respond to the request of the sick and minister to them. Along with Chaplin's in hospitals, there are hospices, with a Christian foundation for example the North London Hospice where the terminally ill are given organised care. They do this by controlling the pain with drugs and help to prepare the dying patients both mentally and spiritually to face death. They also help the relatives to

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Religious Studies (Philosophy & Ethics)
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Identify David Humes understanding of miracles.

Identify David Humes understanding of miracles The philosopher David Hume has suggested that a miracle can be defined as 'A transgression of a law of nature by a particular volition of the Deity or by the interposition of some invisible agent. This is a definition that has found general acceptance by philosophers today. In other words, according to Hume, a miracle is brought about when some 'invisible agent' affects the working of the universe. It is important to note that this 'invisible agent' does not inevitably point to an act of God, as this 'invisible agent' is not, according to Hume, necessarily the God of traditional theism. To clarify exactly what is meant by a 'transgression' in this context, Richard Swinburne has used Biblical examples such as water turning into wine. In these examples it is not the events themselves which make them remarkable but the time scale within which they take place. For example, when water is normally turned into wine it does not happen spontaneously nor does it take a mere few seconds. As the aforementioned Biblical events take place seemingly outside of such natural laws, they are considered miraculous. The transgression of a natural law is not considered sufficient in isolation to grant the event status of a miracle. Swinburne and others consider that miracles need to hold some deeper significance than the transgression itself,

  • Word count: 733
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Religious Studies (Philosophy & Ethics)
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What is a meant by the term 'miracle'? Many people have their own ideas of what they think the answer to this question is. In this essay I will attempt to define the meaning of a miracle by examining what other people have to say about them.

What is a meant by the term 'miracle'? Many people have their own ideas of what they think the answer to this question is. In this essay I will attempt to define the meaning of a miracle by examining what other people have to say about them. The word 'miracle' is used in every day language, mostly used in sarcasm. For example, if there was a very hot day in England some people would say it was a miracle, in a joking manner. Likewise, if England scored 4 goals against Brazil, people might say 'it was a miracle'. How do we know what a miracle really is? There have been many great philosophers who have attempted to explain their understandings of how a miracle can be defined. One such philosopher was a Scotsman called David Hume who once said in the 18th Century, "A miracle is a transgression of a law of nature by the violation of a deity or the interposition of some invisible agent". Translated into simpler terms this means, "A miracle is an event caused by God which breaks or violates a law of nature". Here a law of nature can be described as a force or power on earth that is expected to be there such as gravity. Another example is death because this is something that all human beings will experience whether it is through age, illness or accident- all people expect to die. David Hume uses what some people regard as the 'miracle' of childbirth to describe what he means by

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Religious Studies (Philosophy & Ethics)
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Do Miracles Really Happen?

Do Miracles Really Happen? By Sheemul Ali If your tying to find out if miracles really exist, it is necessary to find a definition of the word miracle and what its purpose is first. Theologian Paul Tillich claimed that: "A genuine miracle is first of all an event which is astonishing, unusual, shaking without contradicting the rational structure of reality. In the second place it is an event, which points to the mystery of being, expressing its relation to us in a definite way" But some say that miracles are just " a series of myths" (David Friedrich Struass) However there is no doubt that with miracles comes the awareness of God, as they must always involve faith. The subject of miracles can often be the deciding point of whether people believe in God or not. It must be noted that even though many believers in God may be brought up to believe in miracles, non-believers in God can also be brought up not to believe in miracles. Some people may not believe in miracles because they feel that there is no evidence. Others might believe that miracles have all the evidence, miracles such as the resurrection of Christ and the miracles performed by Moses. It is thought that these miracles provide the evidence needed to prove that God is "at work" within the world. Religions also have to deal with the rise of modern science. David Humes (1711-1776), never actually admitted

  • Word count: 653
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Religious Studies (Philosophy & Ethics)
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