Editorial November 15, 1930 Issue

Miracles

Clifford P. Smith

Christ Jesus spoke the Aramaic language. This was the language spoken by the Jews in Palestine after their captivity in Babylonia. As everybody knows, the papers composing the New Testament were written in Greek, it being the commercial and literary language which followed the widespread conquests of Alexander the Great. For these reasons and because translation is not mere transliteration, nobody knows exactly what expressions Jesus used when he referred to what are called his miracles. In the King James Version of the New Testament, the Greek words rendered "miracle" also have other translations, particularly "sign" and "work." In the best of the modern versions, the translation "miracle" is not often used; preference is given to "power," "act of power," "sign," "wonder," "wonderful thing," "work," "good work." and "mighty work."

In modern times, a miracle has had many different definitions and explanations. In the present state of human thought, a miracle is usually defined as an effect or event in the physical realm not explicable by known natural law and therefor regarded as supernatural. In this view, the distinctive feature of a so-called miracle is its deviation from or transcendence of known natural law. Therefore, an effect or event once regarded as a miracle may cease to seem miraculous as law becomes better known.

Christian Scientists agree that all effects and events can be tested by their consistence with law, but we would specify divine or spiritual law as the test. If an alleged occurrence does not correspond to known spiritual law, a Christian Scientist can deny its actuality or suspend his judgment of it, as he may be guided by his possession of spiritual sense. He can be sure, however, that an effect or event contrary to spiritual law is an illusion of material sense. This paragraph can be confirmed and elucidated by quotations from Mrs. Eddy's writings, such as these: "Science never averts law, but supports it. All actual causation must interpret omnipotence, the all-knowing Mind" (Miscellaneous Writings, p. 71); "Law is not in matter, but in Mind only" (Rudimental Divine Science, p. 4).

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