Do you believe in
magic? Who doesn’t want to believe that
money can magically be made to appear in someone’s ear, that genies exist and
that they can grant you three wishes, or that you can make people disappear (do
we need to make a list of who some of these might be?)?
Do you believe in
miracles? Can the sick miraculously be
healed? Can a paralyzed person be
miraculously made to walk? Can you talk
to loved ones who are dead? Did God and
Jesus perform miracles, and are they still performing them today?
I would like to start
out by looking at a dictionary definition of miracle. The Funk and Wagnall’s standard college dictionary defines a
miracle as “An event that appears to be neither a part nor result of any known
natural law or agency and is therefore often attributed to a supernatural or
divine source”. (Don’t you just love a
clear and simple definition?!) Let’s
take this definition apart. Note that
it says that it appears not to be the result of any known natural law. This means that an event that follows a law
of nature, but one that is not yet known to us, would qualify as a
miracle. It also says that these events
are often attributed to a supernatural or divine source. It does not stipulate that it must
be attributed to such sources. What
then might qualify as miracles using this definition? An instant cure for all types of cancer? Being able to levitate or fly without any
physical aids? Electing any government
other than the Progressive Conservatives in Alberta? Curing the blind? Healing
the lame? A second definition from the
same dictionary that I would like you to remember is “Any wonderful or amazing
thing, fact or event; a marvel”.
How important are
miracles to religion and spirituality?
I would suggest that they are both an enhancement and a drawback. An enhancement? Miracles are a source of hope for salvation and redemption, they
support the belief in the supernatural, and allow for divine intervention. These all provide sustenance and comfort in
a world that can be a challenge to face each day for many of us. A drawback?
Miracles can keep some away from the church, because who can take
seriously any organization that believes in something that we all know never
really happen?! All those misguided
people who believe statues can shed tears, pictures can bleed; and then there
is the image of Jesus that I just found in the pizza I had delivered!! Many of those who are used to science explaining the logical
operation of our world have a tough time believing in a faith that upholds such
events that they see as plainly ridiculous.
So then, what about
miracles? Should I believe that events
described in the Bible are miracles? Do
I need to believe they are miracles, or can modern science explain them? Much of what would seem miraculous 2000 –
3000 years ago is now well understood science (would follow known natural
laws). Imagine going back 2000 years
and showing people your battery powered portable DVD video player. I can imagine the questions you would get
about the spirits trapped in that little box (at least from those who didn’t
immediately run away from you in abject fear, and if the rest of them didn’t
start stoning you first). Imagine going
back only 400 years and start talking to someone via your hands-free cell phone
headset. I think you would likely be
burning at the stake later that day (either for being possessed by spirits or
for talking to them). Imagine showing
Thomas Edison (inventor of the Gramophone) a CD, and telling him that you play
it by shining laser light on it. His
first question would likely be, “what is a laser?”
To people, who have a
more primitive understanding of the nature of our universe, much of what we
take for granted today would be considered miraculous. Thus, just because inexplicable events
happened to followers of God and Jesus, does not mean that a competent
scientific understanding cannot explain them.
One of the many great gifts I believe God has given us is the ability to
discover and understand the function of our universe.
However, I am not
suggesting that God and Jesus did not perform miracles. Remember the second definition that I
mentioned (any wonderful or amazing thing, fact or event). I do believe that miracles happen and that
God’s creation and Jesus’ redemption of us are miraculous. I also know that these “miracles” will
someday be explainable as we come to understand, more and more, the natural
laws of the universe that God has created us into. Maybe, what I am saying is that I believe that science is one of
the ways that we humans attempt to understand the mind of God.
Next then, why are
miracles important to our faith? For
many, if not all of us, I believe that miracles are a source of “mystery” in
our faith. It is mystery that surrounds
Jesus calming the Sea of Galilee.
Mystery surrounds Moses dividing of the Red Sea to save the Israelites
fleeing from the Egyptians. Mystery
surrounds the resurrection of Jesus (witness the mystery and confusion of the
women who find the empty tomb). It is
both mysterious and miraculous that a lifeless chemical, DNA, and a lifeless
egg cell, when combined together can grow into a living, functioning animal or
human.
Mysterious events add
a depth to our faith. Our responses
when faced with facts or events that evoke a sense of mystery are strongly
emotional and often joyous. We revel in
the mystery and beauty of God’s creation and Jesus’ exemplary life here on
earth. Not knowing or understanding how
God achieved such miracles helps to strengthen our sense that God is omnipotent
and unknowable.
Finally, mystery
leads to wonder (again recall the definition, ‘any wonderful or amazing thing,
fact or event’). Human beings have a
built in predisposition to wonder. It
is wonder about our world that has led us to create tools to make our lives
easier, to develop agriculture to feed more of us and feed us better, to create
beauty in music and art, and to form community groups that sustain and support
us. A sense of wonder also helps to add
depth to our faith.
I stand here in awe
of the beauty and majesty of God’s creation.
I wonder. I wonder will we
discern God’s will for us, I wonder where I will next see God’s hand at work, I
thank God for this wonderful, faithful congregation of God’s children that Judy
and I are fortunate to be a part of.
We are not
alone. We live in God’s world. Thanks be to God!
Loving God.
We come to you in praise and thankfulness for all the blessings in our
lives. The gift of your creation and
your loving presence in our lives gives us strength to carry on. We feel fortunate to live in a land of peace
and plenty. Mindful that many of your
children here and around the world do not experience this bounty, we strive to
envision creation for the whole earth as you intended it, to discover the means
to help those in need, and to foster in our political leaders the will to act
on our behalf to end the inequities of food distribution, justice and wealth in
our world.
We thank you for our health and able
bodies. Some of us are not well, some
are in the hospital, and some are physically unable to leave their homes and be
with us this morning. We wish for
comfort and peace for them, and that they may feel your caring presence in
their lives.
Wise God, we know that you have given us the
guidance necessary to make a heaven here on earth. We study the example of your son, Jesus and try to discern the
wisdom in his actions and words. Be
with us as we study together, worship together and act both as individuals and
a community to do your will. We may
hesitate, we may stumble, but with you walking beside us, hand – in – hand we
will find the strength to carry on and be blessings in the lives of your
children here on earth.
We ask all of these things in the desire to do
your will, and to follow in the example of Jesus, who taught us to pray ….