• Yajur
    31
    As an agnostic it seems fundamental to me that Miracles (something that violates the laws of physics) are impossible. However it is the foundation of most religions, like Christianity.

    For the theists, what's your argument to prove Miracles are actually possible?
    Or if you rather give an objection to David Hume's pretty staigh-forward argument, which follows:

    1. A miracle is “a violation of a law of nature” and “contrary to experience.”

    2.If so, then the prior probability of a miracle is very low.

    3.Therefore, the prior probability of a miracle is very low. (1, 2 MP)

    4.If so, we should believe in the miracle only if the evidence for it is extremely strong.

    5.Therefore, we should believe in the miracle only if the evidence for it is extremely strong. (3, 4 MP)

    6.The evidence for a miracle is never extremely strong.

    7.So, we should never believe in any miracle. (5, 6 MT)
  • Yajur
    31
    To defend premise 6, I'll say there is no strong evidence for a miracle since there is no accounts of a Miracle attested by sufficient number of people who are sufficiently intelligent and unbiased for them to surpass any deception aimed at them.
  • musicpianoaccordion
    44
    http://www.therealpresence.org/archives/Miracles/Miracles_003.htm

    In order to constitute a miracle, is it necessary that something exceed the powers and faculty both of invisible and incorporeal, and of visible and corporeal nature? Which is the same as asking whether something can be called miraculous it if surpasses only the forces of visible and corporeal nature and is arduous, unusual and marvelous, even though it does not exceed the powers of invisible and incorporeal nature, i.e., of an angel. According to the doctrine of St. Thomas, the answer seems to be negative. For he teaches that a miracles occurs when something happens beyond the order of all created nature …. However, the same holy doctor teaches that we do not know all the power of created nature, and thus there is such a thing as a miraculum quoad nos, when something is done by a created power unknown to us, beyond the order of created nature which we know …. But we, for the sake of clarity, prefer to say that major miracles exceed the forces of the whole created nature; and minor miracles exceed the power of corporeal and visible nature only.

    After reading this I got one question: how do we define the term miracle?
  • TheMadFool
    13.8k

    N
    I don't know.

    Why do people take miracles as evidence for the divine?

    Miracles may be done by a time-traveler human on the unsuspecting people of the past or present. I'm working from the premise that a sufficiently advanced technology will appear miraculous to those not in the know of such.

    Also, I believe some folks are just satisfied with attributing the ordinary laws of nature to the divine and don't care too much about miracles.

    Personally, I think we shouldn't believe in miracles as evidence of the divine. What we can do, in the spirit of fair play and ''science'', is investigate such phenomena if they arise and try to explain them. Whether such explanations can be scientifically done is an open question.
  • Yajur
    31
    how do we define the term miracle?musicpianoaccordion

    I would define a miracle as an event which is so highly improbable that they’re the least probable occurrence at any given instance.
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