Current Events > how do you define a miracle?

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What is a miracle to you? From what i have thought, it can be interpreted in 2 ways. For the realists, miracle can simply be defined as somethinf that have kow chance of happening happens.

For example flipping heads for a 100 time straight. Probability wise, there is a very low chance of it ever happening, but it is never a 0 percent chance aka not totally impossible.

For the other side, it can be defined as something impossible that occur. Like throwing a coin and suddenly it turn into gold and split into a thousand pieces.

What do you think?
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If it happened it's not a miracle.
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Trump dieing.
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I think of miracles as occurrences that can't be explained by science. so, closer to the second definition, but not really the same
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ChromaticAngel posted...

If it happened it's not a miracle.

Yes, the effect to the second one is basically doom the word miracle itself to be only appliable in speculative or fictional scenario.

Thats why in some ways, the first definition is more comforting in some ways, because it cN happen to you some day (regardless if the effect is positive or negative)
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averagejoel posted...

I think of miracles as occurrences that can't be explained by science. so, closer to the second definition, but not really the same

So by your definition, miracle fills the gap where science hadnt reach yet?

Imo my problems with this is because our understanding of the world isnt complete, because something complex in our eyes might be mundane when the right set of thinking, tools and theories has been invented.

But there might be some truth to that as well. For cavemen, lighting, volcanoes and smartphones might be a miracle. After all reality is limited to the senses and understanding of the being that perceived it.
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There are 3 definitions but because of the first one, I can't really use the 3rd, yet.

A supernatural act making the impossible possible.

An unlikely or yet unexplained event happening or a known, likely event happening but people calling it a miracle because of emotion bias, like pregnancy. (This is a useless yet the most common usage.)

The way I would prefer to use it, poetic license to "mythologize" a real event.
The fall of the Berlin Wall, "A wall that once stood looking indestructible, fell over night."
The lone protester in Tiananmen square, "Once a man carrying his shopping, became more than a man."
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Anarchy_Juiblex posted...

There are 3 definitions but because of the first one, I can't really use the 3rd, yet.

A supernatural act making the impossible possible.

An unlikely or yet unexplained event happening or a known, likely event happening but people calling it a miracle because of emotion bias, like pregnancy. (This is a useless yet the most common usage.)

The way I would prefer to use it, poetic license to "mythologize" a real event.
The fall of the Berlin Wall, "A wall that once stood looking indestructible, fell over night."
The lone protester in Tiananmen square, "Once a man carrying his shopping, became more than a man."

I like these. Honestly didnt thought of that before. Thanks.

It is basically a kind of mix between my first one with human bias that appear within someone's mind.

For example, the fall of berlin wall might be predictable if you look at the history. The possibility of the failure of the state isnt that low as well because it reeally seems unsustainable, but added with human bias and our knack of giving something a symbol can make something mundane into something fantastical, therefore making the union of east and west Germany this great symbol that happened, making it a miracle.

Aka. If you believe something is a,miracle, even somethin as certain and universal as gravity, it can be miracle.

Thats over generalizing, but you get the idea
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Anarchy_Juiblex posted...

The way I would prefer to use it, poetic license to "mythologize" a real event.
The fall of the Berlin Wall, "A wall that once stood looking indestructible, fell over night."
The lone protester in Tiananmen square, "Once a man carrying his shopping, became more than a man."

The issue here is that it ascribes events like the collapse of the Berlin Wall to something other than the actions of men.
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I'd say a miracle is any occurrence without a logical or scientific explanation, at least not one that can currently be explained or fully understood, or something so outside the realm of what's generally considered to be a possibility occuring.

Something like this for example: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/04/nyregion/04fall.html
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apolloooo posted...

averagejoel posted...

I think of miracles as occurrences that can't be explained by science. so, closer to the second definition, but not really the same

So by your definition, miracle fills the gap where science hadnt reach yet?

Imo my problems with this is because our understanding of the world isnt complete, because something complex in our eyes might be mundane when the right set of thinking, tools and theories has been invented.

But there might be some truth to that as well. For cavemen, lighting, volcanoes and smartphones might be a miracle. After all reality is limited to the senses and understanding of the being that perceived it.

exactly right. the boundary of what constitutes a "miracle" gets smaller all the time, and it's subjective to a certain extent
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