Do You Believe in Miracles
Ami Denman
Dr. Anderson
Phil 1043
4/26/13
Do You Believe In Miracles?
Do you believe in miracles? I find it rather intriguing that some people still try to use science or any number of other disciplines as a way of explaining, give meaning or rationalizing the question of miracles or the existence of a higher power. I find it hard to understand why humans deny at least the possibility that everyday life presents us with mysteries that cannot simply be explained by human reasoning, rational explanations, the laws of science, or by the laws of nature, but instead just simply acknowledge that some things are unexplainable or justifiable and just miraculous. Although the belief in miracles have seemly been acknowledged as factual for centuries in works such as the Bible, many philosophers and scientists still question the validity of a miraculous event or experience and refuse to ascribe to the reasonable explanation that some things in the natural world cannot be proved by the method of science and are explicitly miraculous. A miracle can be defined by Hume as a ʻtransgression of a law of nature by the violation of a particular deity or invisible agentʼ. For scholars such as Maurice Wiles, Alastair McKinnon, and Steven Bayne a miracle can never occur because the actual concept of a miracle is incoherent. Bayne states, “Given Hume’s view on the nature of belief and belief production, it seems…that we should begin not by asking whether belief in a miracle can be rationally justified, but by asking whether a belief in a miracle is even possible.” However, I will aim to demonstrate why miracles can occur because ultimately the definition of miracles put forward by David Hume is archaic and irrelevant to today’s society. David Hume proposed a theoretical and practical case for why it is impossible for one ever to know if a miracle has occurred. His theoretical case begins by stating that all our knowledge comes from sensory experience and empirical evidence
Dr. Anderson
Phil 1043
4/26/13
Do You Believe In Miracles?
Do you believe in miracles? I find it rather intriguing that some people still try to use science or any number of other disciplines as a way of explaining, give meaning or rationalizing the question of miracles or the existence of a higher power. I find it hard to understand why humans deny at least the possibility that everyday life presents us with mysteries that cannot simply be explained by human reasoning, rational explanations, the laws of science, or by the laws of nature, but instead just simply acknowledge that some things are unexplainable or justifiable and just miraculous. Although the belief in miracles have seemly been acknowledged as factual for centuries in works such as the Bible, many philosophers and scientists still question the validity of a miraculous event or experience and refuse to ascribe to the reasonable explanation that some things in the natural world cannot be proved by the method of science and are explicitly miraculous. A miracle can be defined by Hume as a ʻtransgression of a law of nature by the violation of a particular deity or invisible agentʼ. For scholars such as Maurice Wiles, Alastair McKinnon, and Steven Bayne a miracle can never occur because the actual concept of a miracle is incoherent. Bayne states, “Given Hume’s view on the nature of belief and belief production, it seems…that we should begin not by asking whether belief in a miracle can be rationally justified, but by asking whether a belief in a miracle is even possible.” However, I will aim to demonstrate why miracles can occur because ultimately the definition of miracles put forward by David Hume is archaic and irrelevant to today’s society. David Hume proposed a theoretical and practical case for why it is impossible for one ever to know if a miracle has occurred. His theoretical case begins by stating that all our knowledge comes from sensory experience and empirical evidence
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