Miracle

See also: Miracle (homonymy)

A miracle is an extraordinary fact or Surnaturel, allotted to a divine and achieved power either directly, or via a servant of this divinity. The miracles are not explainable scientifically and this for two reasons:

• the majority of the miracles are reported; it is the case inter alia, but not only, of the miracles announced in the holy books like the Bible, the Torah or the Coran;
• an explainable miracle scientifically is not regarded often any more as a miracle. That relates to in particular the cases of contemporary miracles.

Catholic direction

In the Catholic religion, the miracle is not limited to its extraordinary and unexplainable component by the scientific knowledge: such extraordinary phenomena can (in this interpretation) be obtained by actions of Magie or Théurgie, without there being a miracle with the clean direction. For Catholicism, the miracle is the direct intervention of the power of God. This bars from the intermediate intervention of power from spirits or demons, which can also cause unexplainable phenomena in the form of paranormaux phenomena.

To be able to speak about miracle, it should in theory be shown that the noted extraordinary phenomenon had an effect in conformity with the plan of God. The miracle is thus characterized above all by its effect compared to advance of the faith: if the effect were positive, it is possible to speak about miracle. Conversely, if the effect is negative, the extraordinary phenomenon will be interpreted like the possible intervention of a spirit, but not like the effective intervention of God.

Various connotations of the word

Although one often understands by miracle the miracles of God, the god abrahamic, any divinity can carry out miracles. One thinks in particular of the divinities of the religions polytheists like the religions Greek, Scandinavian or pre-Colombians. However, it seems that amazement is more specifically associated with the religions monotheists: for the ancient religions, the miracles, very supernatural that they are, are not extraordinary.

Another insinuation is that a miracle is inevitably beneficial . There still, from a point of view of good God, it is generally the case. Miracles supposedly achieved by Jesus de Nazareth (resurrection of Lazare, Miracle of the loaves and fishes…) are those which are most familiar of the Christians. In the Muslim world, the arrival of Coran on ground is a miracle, or even the night Voyage of Mahomet. However, a miracle can be negative very well, like the plagues of Egypt or the Déluge, to remain in the abrahamic religions. As for the “miracles” (if they are never called thus, technically, it is) Greek gods, these are seldom truly beneficial interventions (that one speaks about the transformation of Arachné into spider due to Hubris, or of mislaying at sea of Ulysses by Poséidon or even of the metamorphosis of Narcisse in Narcisse).

The miracle in esotericism

In esotericism/Occultism, one opposes two concepts:

• the miracle , produced by the means of the Théurgie. It is the capacity of the religion, of the priest.
• the wonder , produced by the means of the Thaumaturgy. It is the capacity of the magic, of the magus/magician/wizard.

In both cases, a scientific explanation is largely additional. The miracle comes “from in top”, whereas the wonder comes from in bottom. To note that, so in a direction running, one says of a miracle-worker that it “achieves miracles”, it is by definition incorrect: it achieves wonders (it is about a Métonymie). Only a divine being or its representative (his “conduit”) can achieve a miracle.

Current direction

Another metonymy is the current direction of the word miracle. A miracle according to at the same time memorable, incredible and beneficial common understanding being, one says of a person that it achieves miracles when it produces a High-fact, something regarded as very difficult.

By a semantic Weakening even more thorough, such “a miracle” can simply be a very useful and relatively difficult action.

Critical of the miracle

As for any supernatural phenomenon, the proven existence of the miracles is a subject of litigation between believers (religious or esoterists) and rationalist for which they are natural phenomena that contemporary knowledge of the miracle could not explain or of skilful and subtle interventions also explainable only one turn of magic.

Miracles today

Few miracles nowadays occur in the Western company. Among the reasons advanced, let us quote the suspicion . For some, this one makes it possible to dismount the frauds. For others, this refusal of the miracle (often allotted to the Effect placebo) prevents it from occurring. At all events, to some rare Heavy exceptions near like , the miracles are reported especially in the countries of the South. With the the United States, it is often refers to divine appearances in bread melba toasts or chocolate moulds or of the statues which cry. These miracles finish often sold on EBay.

According to a survey of IFOP carried out in 2004, 42% of the French believed in the miracles

35% of the French affirm to accept the miracles, according to a survey of the institute TNS-Sofrès realized in face-to-face discussion July 6th and 7th 2006 near a sample of 1000 people representative of the population, according to the method of the quotas. 62% of the questioned people do not believe in the miracles and 3% do not have an opinion on the subject, 31% see “a phenomenon there that one cannot explain”, 27% “a happy event which one did not expect” and only 8% “an intervention of God”.

• See January of Bénévent whose “miracle” of the liquefaction of blood is usually celebrated three times per annum.

See too

miracle|miracle

References

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