Being God-loving Truth students, the majority of the class raised their hands, including me.
Lonnie, the fierce and logical soul that she is spoke up and said, "It depends on your meaning of miracle." She took the words right out of my mouth!
If you take David Hume's definition of miracle, a miracle would be anything that defies physics.
With that definition, I suppose, David Hume would believe in miracles if he saw a construction vehicle levitating in the air.
Dictionary.com defines miracle as the following:
- an effect or extraordinary event in the physical world that surpasses all known human or natural powers and is ascribed to a supernatural cause.
- such an effect or event manifesting or considered as a work of God.
- a wonder; marvel
- a wonderful or surpassing example of some quality: a miracle of modern acoustics
An example of the first (and maybe the second) definition (depending on who you are talking to) above would be a person whose prognosis is emanate and immediate death, and then suddenly, something happens and they do not die. Doug's heartfelt example of his mother and her unexpected heart transplant was poignant.
We also talked about modern day technology being considered miracles to our ancestors.
Some examples of what I consider a miracle to be are life occurrences that have meaning to me.
- conception and birth of a human being
- a person finding the love of her life, finally breaking the patterns of relationship dysfunction
- an abused, disadvantaged child being able to function efficiently and effectively in society after self realization and recovery
So, I would add onto my definition of miracle: that which I don't understand. There are laws, physical laws even, scientific laws in quantum physics I do not understand and I know that I operate on faith in believing in miracles - that miracles occur, whether we understand them, or not.
And yes, I am aware that I see what I see as miracles simply because I choose to see them that way. Like Albert Eistein, I am a genius. He says this: "There are two ways to live your life: One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other as though everything is a miracle. Guess I'm smarter than I look. ~ELF
Evelyn, I love your explanations and sense of humor!
ReplyDeleteI have come to understand "miracle" (at this point) as "something I didn't think could happen for reasons I don't understand". For me, it is all in the definition.
Part of the problem, in my opinion, is that the mind draws limits around *anything* to understand it. Metaphor, simile, comparison, contrast, description, adjective, etc. To define it is to limit it.
In SEE metaphysics class, I came to understand that Divine Ideas (in the Absolute) come into manifestation ONLY when they are "limited" by the filters of the subconscious and consciousness. Which is why, to your point, that we can only "see" (be aware of) only that for which we have the consciousness. Miracles are like that. Our minds limit (don't believe) the potential and possibility, and then when something else happens, we call it a miracle.
The unlimited Potential of anything to come into being only takes shape when there is a limit placed on it. That limit is consciousness.
Not sure if my explanation is making sense...
So many things I used to call "miracles" because they seemed magical and mystical, I now call "miracles" out of wonder, awe, and gratitude. I don't try to understand them or explain them. They just are, and I am grateful!
ELF,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the reminder of miracles. My greatest miracle has been the birth of my two children. I remember feeling them move inside of me and the miraculous experience of birth. Birth is an everyday event throughout the world and yet we've turned it into nothing out of the ordinary. Wake Up, World! Every single moment is a miracle. What a gift to be alive!
Yes you are a genius! I think Love is a miracle as no one can explain it or prove it yet we feel it and experience it!
ReplyDeleteThank you for a beautiful blog Evelyn. I also take a wide look at this topic like you. I believe life itself is a miracle, from the smallest occurrences to the larger most wondrous. I enjoyed how you pointed out that miracles happen whether we understand them or not. This helps us to be open. If we were only open to what we understood, we would not grow. Another definition I've heard which engages the more popular held view of a miracle is: "an act of science which has not been discovered yet." That is how I view Jesus's miracles for example. He is using higher spiritual science which has not been discovered by the majority of our world yet. Just like our science today is a miracle compared to previous centuries, the spiritual science by which miracles such as those of Jesus are operated, will one day be performed nonchalantly by the populace of this planet. Then their ideas of a "miracle" will have shifted to something else! That is why, to me, all of life is a miracle:) God Bless You.
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