Miracles​—Fact or Fiction?

THE gentleman’s attention was immediately caught by the bumper sticker on a passing car, “Miracles Happen​—Just Ask the Angels.” Although he was a religious man himself, he was unsure what this meant. Did the sign mean that the driver believed in miracles? Or was it, rather, a jocular way of indicating lack of belief in both miracles and angels?

You may be interested in what German author Manfred Barthel noted: “Miracle is a word that immediately polarizes readers into two warring camps.” Those who believe in miracles are convinced that they occur and perhaps occur often.a For example, it is reported that in Greece during the last few years, believers have claimed that miracles take place about once a month. This led a bishop of the Greek Orthodox Church to caution: “The believer tends to humanize God, Mary, and the saints. Believers should not carry things too far.”

Belief in miracles is less widespread in some other countries. According to an Allensbach poll published in Germany in 2002, 71 percent of its citizens consider miracles to be fiction, not fact. Among the less than one third who do believe in miracles, however, are three women who claim to have received a message from the Virgin Mary. A few months after Mary allegedly appeared to them​—accompanied by angels and a dove—​the German newspaper Westfalenpost reported: “Up until now about 50,000 pilgrims, people in search of healing, as well as the curious have closely followed the visions seen by the women.” An additional 10,000 were expected to stream into the village to experience additional appearances. Similar appearances of the Virgin Mary are said to have taken place in Lourdes, France, in 1858, and in Fátima, Portugal, in 1917.

How About Non-Christian Religions?

Belief in miracles is found in almost all religions. The Encyclopedia of Religion explains that the founders of Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam held diverse views about miracles, but it notes: “The subsequent history of these religions demonstrates unmistakably that miracles and miracle stories have been an integral part of man’s religious life.” This reference work says that “the Buddha himself was sometimes led to work miracles.” Later, when “Buddhism was transplanted to China, its missionaries often resorted to the display of miraculous powers.”

After referring to several such supposed miracles, that encyclopedia concludes: “One may not be prepared to accept all of these miracle stories told by pious biographers, but they were undoubtedly created with the good intention of glorifying the Buddha, who was able to endow his ardent followers with such miraculous powers.” The same authority says of Islam: “The majority of the Islamic community has never ceased to expect miracles. Muhammad is presented in the traditions (hadīths) as having worked miracles in public on many occasions. . . . Even after their death, saints are believed to work miracles at their own graves on behalf of the faithful, and their intercession is piously invoked.”

What of the Miracles in Christianity?

Many of those who have accepted Christianity are divided in their opinions. Some accept as fact the Bible reports about the miracles performed by Jesus Christ or by servants of God in pre-Christian times. Yet, many agree with Protestant Reformer Martin Luther. The Encyclopedia of Religion says of him: “Both Luther and Calvin wrote that the age of miracles was over and that their occurrence should not be expected.” The Catholic Church held to its belief in miracles “without trying to defend it intellectually,” says this reference work. However, “the academic Protestant community came to believe that the practice of Christianity was largely a matter of morality and that neither God nor the spiritual world contacted or influenced practical human life to any great extent.”

Other professed Christians, including some clergymen, doubt that the miracles mentioned in the Bible are factual. Take, for example, the burning-bush episode reported in the Bible at Exodus 3:1-5. The book What the Bible Really Says explains that a number of German theologians do not take this as the literal account of a miracle. Instead, they interpret it as “a symbol of Moses’ inner struggle with the pricks and burning pangs of conscience.” The book adds: “The flames could also be seen as flowers that burst into bloom in the sunlight of the divine presence.”

You may find such an explanation less than satisfying. So, what should you believe? Is it realistic to believe that miracles have ever taken place? And what about modern-day miracles? Since we cannot ask the angels, whom can we ask?

The Biblical Position

No one can deny that the Bible reports that God in bygone days at times stepped in to perform humanly impossible acts. Of him, we read: “You proceeded to bring forth your people Israel out of the land of Egypt, with signs and with miracles and with a strong hand and with a stretched-out arm and with great fearsomeness.” (Jeremiah 32:21) Imagine, the most powerful nation of the day brought to its knees by means of ten divinely sent plagues, including the death of its firstborn. Miracles indeed!​—Exodus, chapters 7 to 14.

Centuries later, the four Gospel writers described some 35 miracles performed by Jesus. In fact, their words suggest that he performed even more supernatural feats than those they report. Are these reports fact or fiction?b​—Matthew 9:35; Luke 9:11.

If the Bible is what it claims to be​—God’s Word of truth—​then you have clear reason to believe in the miracles about which it speaks. The Bible is explicit in reporting that miracles occurred in bygone days​—miraculous healings, resurrections, and the like—​yet it is just as explicit in explaining that such miracles no longer take place. (See the box “Why Certain Miracles No Longer Occur,” on page 4.) So does this mean that even those who accept the Bible as fact consider belief in modern-day miracles to be unfounded? Let the next article reply.

[Footnotes]

[Box on page 4]

WHY CERTAIN MIRACLES NO LONGER OCCUR

Various kinds of miracles are mentioned in the Bible. (Exodus 7:19-21; 1 Kings 17:1-7; 18:22-38; 2 Kings 5:1-14; Matthew 8:24-27; Luke 17:11-19; John 2:1-11; 9:1-7) Many of these miracles served to identify Jesus as the Messiah, and they proved that he had God’s backing. Jesus’ early followers displayed miraculous gifts, such as speaking in tongues and discernment of inspired utterances. (Acts 2:5-12; 1 Corinthians 12:28-31) Such miraculous gifts were useful for the Christian congregation during its infancy. How so?

Well, copies of the Scriptures were few. Usually, only the rich possessed scrolls or books of any sort. In pagan lands, there was no knowledge of the Bible or of its Author, Jehovah. Christian teaching had to be conveyed by word of mouth. The miraculous gifts were useful in showing that God was using the Christian congregation.

But Paul explained that these gifts would pass away once they were no longer needed. “Whether there are gifts of prophesying, they will be done away with; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will be done away with. For we have partial knowledge and we prophesy partially; but when that which is complete arrives, that which is partial will be done away with.”​—1 Corinthians 13:8-10.

Today, people have access to Bibles, as well as concordances and encyclopedias. Over six million trained Christians are assisting others to gain divine knowledge based on the Bible. Thus, miracles are no longer necessary to attest to Jesus Christ as God’s appointed Deliverer or to provide proof that Jehovah is backing his servants.

Miracles That You Have Seen!

THE word “miracle” has the secondary meaning of “an extremely outstanding or unusual event, thing, or accomplishment.” We have all seen this kind of miracle, independent of divine intervention.

Gaining increased knowledge of the physical laws of nature, humans have been able to achieve what at one time was commonly viewed as unachievable. For example, a hundred years ago, most people probably thought impossible what computers, television, space technology, and similar modern-day developments have made commonplace now.

Recognizing that they have only partial knowledge of the scientific wonders behind God’s creations, some scientists admit that they can no longer state with certainty that something is impossible. At most, they are willing to say that it is improbable. Thus they leave the way open for future “miracles.”

Even if we are using the primary meaning of “miracle,” thus referring to things “attributed to supernatural agency,” we can say that each of us has seen miracles. For example, we observe the sun, moon, and stars​—all products of a “supernatural agency,” the Creator himself. Besides, who can fully explain in detail how the human body functions? how the brain works? or how the human embryo develops? The book The Body Machine points out: “The human organism, controlled and co-ordinated by the central nervous system, is a sophisticated sensory apparatus, a self-regulating mobile engine, a self-reproducing computer​—a marvellous and in many ways mysterious creation.” The God who created “the human organism” indeed performed a miracle, one that continues to amaze us. There are also other kinds of miracles that you have seen, though you may not have recognized them as such.

Can a Book Be a Miracle?

No book enjoys such a wide circulation as does the Bible. Do you see in it a miracle? Can we attribute its existence to a “supernatural agency”? True, the Bible is a book written down by humans, but they claimed to have expressed the thoughts of God, not their own. (2 Samuel 23:1, 2; 2 Peter 1:20, 21) Think of it. They were some 40 individuals, living over a span of 1,600 years. They came from backgrounds as varied as those of shepherds, military men, fishermen, civil servants, physicians, priests, and kings. Yet, they were able to convey a unified message of hope that is both truthful and accurate.

Based on a careful study, Jehovah’s Witnesses accept the Bible, “not as the word of men, but, just as it truthfully is, as the word of God,” as the apostle Paul wrote. (1 Thessalonians 2:13) Their publications have over the years explained how so-called contradictions in the Bible can be harmonized with its overall message. This inner harmony is in itself a proof of divine authorship.a

No other book has been subjected to such vigorous attempts to destroy it as has the Bible. Yet, it still exists and this, at least in part, in over 2,000 languages. Both its physical preservation as a book and the preservation of its integrity manifest divine intervention. The Bible is truly a miracle!

A Miracle That “Is Alive and Exerts Power”

The miracles of bygone days​—miraculous healings and resurrections—​no longer occur. But we have reason for confidence that in God’s upcoming new world, such miracles will take place again, this time on a global scale. They will bring permanent relief and will go beyond our present ability to comprehend.

The miracle of the Bible can even today perform what is tantamount to miracles by motivating people to change their personalities for the better. (See an example in the box “The Power of God’s Word,” on page 8.) Hebrews 4:12 states: “The word of God is alive and exerts power and is sharper than any two-edged sword and pierces even to the dividing of soul and spirit, and of joints and their marrow, and is able to discern thoughts and intentions of the heart.” Yes, the Bible has been instrumental in transforming the lives of over six million people who live around the globe, filling their lives with purpose and offering them a marvelous hope for the future.

Why not allow the Bible to work a miracle in your life?

[Footnote]

[Box/Picture on page 7]

ALREADY DEAD OR STILL ALIVE?

According to John 19:33, 34, Jesus was already dead when “one of the soldiers jabbed his side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out.” However, Matthew 27:49, 50 indicates that Jesus was still alive when this took place. Why the difference?

The Mosaic Law forbade leaving a criminal to hang all night on the stake. (Deuteronomy 21:22, 23) Hence, in Jesus’ day, if an impaled criminal was still alive late in the day, it was customary to break his legs, thus speeding up the dying process. He would no longer be able to raise himself erect so as to breathe properly. That the soldiers broke the legs of the two evildoers impaled alongside Jesus but did not break his indicates that they thought that he was dead. The soldier possibly pierced his side just to remove all doubt and to eliminate any later revival that might be falsely heralded as a resurrection.

The text at Matthew 27:49, 50 gives a different order of events. It says: “Another man took a spear and pierced his side, and blood and water came out. Again Jesus cried out with a loud voice, and yielded up his spirit.” The italicized sentence, however, does not appear in all ancient Bible manuscripts. Many authorities believe that it was later interpolated from John’s Gospel but was misplaced. Thus, many translations set the sentence off in brackets or parentheses, offer an explanatory footnote, or simply omit the sentence altogether.

The master text by Westcott and Hort, used extensively as a basis for the New World Translation, puts the sentence in double brackets. It notes that the sentence “must lie under strong presumption of having been introduced by scribes.”

The overwhelming evidence then is that John 19:33, 34 is factual and that Jesus was already dead when the Roman soldier pierced him with the spear.

[Box/Picture on page 8]

THE POWER OF GOD’S WORD

As a teenager and victim of a broken home, Detlef drifted into a world of drugs, alcohol, and heavy metal.b He became what is commonly called a skinhead, and his violent behavior soon got him into trouble with the police.

In 1992, 60 skinheads became involved in a massive brawl with about 35 punkers at a restaurant and bar in northeastern Germany. One of the punkers, Thomas, was so badly beaten that he died of his injuries. Several of the ringleaders, including Detlef, were sentenced to prison after a trial that received major media coverage.

Shortly after Detlef was released from prison, a pamphlet was handed to him by Jehovah’s Witnesses. The pamphlet was entitled “Why Is Life So Full of Problems?” Detlef immediately recognized the truthfulness of what it said, and he began to study the Bible with the Witnesses. This completely turned his life around. Since 1996 he has been a zealous Witness of Jehovah.

Siegfried, a former punker, was a good friend of Thomas, the young man who was killed; he too later became a Witness and is now a congregation elder. When Siegfried visited Detlef’s congregation to deliver a Bible talk (incidentally, Thomas’ mother also attends meetings there occasionally), Detlef invited him to lunch. Some ten years ago, their hatred would have been hard to control. Today, their brotherly love is obvious.

Detlef and Siegfried look forward to welcoming Thomas back to life in an earthly paradise. Says Detlef: “Just thinking of this moves me to tears. I am so sorry for what I did.” Their common desire is to help Thomas then, as they today help others, to get to know Jehovah and to rejoice in the hope the Bible gives.

Yes, such is the power of God’s Word!

[Footnote]