What is a Miracle?

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Atomagenesis

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Read this By Br. Alexis Bungalo:

Thursday, November 09, 2006
Bogus Miracles
There is a very great misunderstanding today about what constitutes an authentic miracle, sufficient for the determination of whether a deceased Catholic is a saint.

A miracle strictly speaking is any divine intervention which manifests itself as such by the accomplishement of that which is beyond the order of nature. There are miracles which are beyond the order of nature, inasmuch as they accomplish what nature rarely does, never does, could never do; miracles which any nature rarely does, no nature ever does, and no nature ever could do.

Here we have 2 classes of miracles and 3 subcategories for a total of 6 genera of miracles.

What human nature rarely does: Thus we can say that the works of Shakespear are miraculous, or the writings of Einstein. Each require nothing extraordinary per se, since human nature itself without grace is capable of such art or science. Such miracles are not proof of holiness.

What human nature never does: Thus we can say that if someone's skin would turn the color of silver or gold, or if someone could see a shoe print left by an astronaut on the Moon, while himself remaining on earth, we could say that it was miraculous. But though nature never does it, it is not beyond the power of nature, per se, to do. Such miracles are not proof of holiness.

What human nature never could do: Thus we can say that if someone can turn into liquid and turn back into himself, that it would be miraculous. But human nature can never such such a thing. However, such is not a sign of holiness.

What any nature rarely does: Thus we can say that if any living thing lived twice as long as the oldest known member of its species, or had some other unique quality, that was singular in all of creation, that it would be miraculous: but such is not the proof of divine intervention, since the order of nature itself being a divine handiwork, we can presuppose that it contains such extraordinary perfections. Such miracles are not proof of holiness.

What any nature never does: Thus if a living thing never died, such as would have happend if Adam did not sin, he would not have died, we could say that it is miraculous, though in reference to Adam, it would only be such in comparison to the present state of man, after the fall, since before the Fall there was no death. Such miracles are not proof of holiness.

What no nature could ever do: Thus neither an angel nor a man nor anything natural or created, would do or ever could do: such as to be in 2 places at the same time or to transmute one thing into another in an instant. Such miracles are not always proof of holiness.

Why?

Because God can give Catholics extraordinary graces to elicit the faith of others, such as the working of miracles, which can be had even if the one having them is not in the state of grace.

What then are miracles which are certain signs of a Saint?

Traditionally these would be considered those things which occured after the death of the Saint, which also occured after invoking the Saint explicitly and in cases where there were no other active causes, and in which that which occured (the miracle) was essentially supernatural, such that no human nature nor any angelic or lesser nature ever could do.

Some Examples of What is not a Certain Miracle:

Some of the recent miracles alleged for recently canonized or to be canonized individuals do not meet the traditional criteria for Sainthood.

E.G. the miracle attributed to Mother Teresa of Calcutta, in which a miraculous medal was placed on her tomb, and then touched to a patient suffering cancer, who was undergoing medical treatments for cancer. These other causes or the intervention of Our Lady are sufficient explanations. Therefore since there were other active possible causes, the cure is not a sure sign nor the requisite kind of miracle.

E.G. the recent miracle attributed to John Paul II, in which a man with cancer from Salerno Italy was entirely cured after his wife had a dream in which she saw the last Pope holding a baby. There being no correlation to the dream, nor any apparent signification to it, and the man having been under medical care for the treatment of cancer, the remission of his cancer, even suddenly, could be attributed to that care or to nature itself, since the immediate cure of cancer is possible by nature, it having been proven that the body does have a power, howeverso minimal, which can kill cancer cells.

E.G. many of the miracles alleged at Medjegorgie, such as rosaries turning the color of gold. Most rosaries are made from metal links which are plated; when the plating wears off you can see the gold colored undercoat; such a plating can naturally dissolve in just a short time, since it is only one-atom in thickness. Such an event can occur naturally or by the intervention of a devil. It is not clear sign of divine intervention.

E.G. the alleged miracle of John XXII, in which after his death a nun who was gravely ill with a disease that was not clearly diagnosed, invoked Our Lady and John XXIII and was eventually cured. Since the disease had no clear origin or form, it could well have been a diabolic manifestation, which is always of the most obscure or undeterminate form, especially since when Our Lady was invoked the nun got more sick, which does not seem reconcilable with what we know about God's love for the Virgin, or Her Power over all nature, granted to Her by Her Son.
 
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sneezingleopard

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if you are veryt interested inthis topic I would suggest C.S. LEwis's book "Miracles". I really enjoyed this book and it helped clear up a lot for me on what a miracle is. If I get the time I'll come back and lay out some of the main points made in the book, maybe there are notes on the boook somewhere online.
 
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