wonder

Wondrous fishing for the disciples and the revelation of Christ on the Sea of Galilee , illumination from Codex Egberti, 10th century.

As a miracle colloquially is an event whose occurrence you can not explain, so it triggers wonder and amazement. It therefore generally denotes something amazing and extraordinary.

In the narrower sense, it is understood to be an event in space and time that apparently or really contradicts human reason and experience as well as the laws of nature and history. Today's idea of a miracle as “ supernatural ” emerged only in modern times; it presupposes knowledge of the existence of natural laws . For people in antiquity and the Middle Ages, on the other hand, for whom phenomena such as lightning and thunder were inexplicable and who faced a seemingly disordered, irregular environment, the boundary between the “possible” and the “impossible” was far more permeable.

The term

The concept of miracles derived from wondering oneself comes from antiquity, which was shaped by Hellenism ( ancient Greek terms: θαῦμα thaúma "miracle, marvel" and θαυμάσιον thaumásion "strange, wonderful"). He was mostly referring to amazing observations in nature. Unexpected, contradicting events have also been called paradoxes . Around 100 AD, the creator of paradoxographic writings Phlegon von Tralles collected unusual phenomena, particularly in relation to humans: from the freak to sex reassignment to the temporary resuscitation of a dead person.

In Latin , the term miracle ( miraculum "miracle thing") was used to refer to sensational things that entertain an audience, especially extraordinary human achievements. The greatest man-made miracles have been around since the 1st century BC. Called the seven wonders of the world . The term miraculum (“miracle”) was differentiated from mirabilia (“wonderful”) in the Middle Ages , for example by Caesarius von Heisterbach (around 1180 – after 1240) in his work Dialogus miraculorum . A miraculum is supposed to be a direct action of God who at one point overrides the laws of nature, while mirabilia more generally refers to phenomena that cannot be understood with the mind and appear to be triggered by a higher power.

The etymological interpretation of the word miracle ( Old High German wuntar ) , that is, based on the root of the term, belongs to Indo-European “uen” (“to demand”). “Miracle” would then be related to “wish”.

Before the general recognition of the laws of nature in the course of the Enlightenment, it was considered a miracle when a being accomplishes something that does not fall within its "competence". After the Enlightenment, a breach of the laws of nature was considered a miracle .

overview

The term miracle includes all those events that are ascribed to the intervention of a deity or metaphysical force.

Philosophical metaphysics and theology - especially in the history of Europe shaped by Christianity - see behind such events an unknown or invisible cause of a higher order, which refers to the operation of a power that is not subject to natural laws. However, theology itself differentiates between different terms of miracles: It designates isolated, punctual - actual or apparent - exceptions to the law of causation, often as "miracles", in contrast to a miracle that is attributed to divine intervention.

The rationalism based on a closed worldview that can only be substantiated scientifically and the empiricism based only on verifiable experience fundamentally deny the possibility of miracles. Agnosticism and skepticism deny the recognizability of higher causes, so that miracles and beliefs in miracles have no relevance for life in this world. The ideological atheism combats the belief in miracles as superstition .

The theism generally translated with the possibility of miracles. The pantheism sets the world and natural phenomena with the work of God directly in one, so that the existence of the world itself appears as a miracle.

In a naturalistically reflected view of the world, miracle reports are the expression for the unchecked assumption that we are dealing with a punctual breach of natural laws and the causal connection in the course of history. For such events, philosophy also coined the term contingency and thus grants the possibility of scientifically (still) inexplicable events.

In the context of historical research , miracle reports are generally viewed with skepticism. Despite the frequency of such reports in ancient and medieval sources, the theory of history hardly devotes itself to this topic.

According to a survey of 1003 people in Germany in March 2019, 66 percent believe in miracles. Faith is more pronounced among women than among men (75 to 57 percent), and greater in West Germany than in East Germany (67 to 62 percent).

Miracles in Hellenistic antiquity

From ancient Greece there are reports of miracles that are said to have been performed by Heracles . They were read by ancient Greek theology as an indication of the divinity of Heracles and were used by European cultures as an opportunity to venerate Heracles. Among his many wonderful acts are the "twelve labors of Heracles" which were imposed on him by King Eurystheus and which involved superhuman struggles and actually impossible tasks.

According to Herodotus , Aristeas of Prokonnesus died and rose again.

The philosopher Apollonios of Tyana is said to have been born when his mother was struck by lightning while picking flowers. Later he is said to have performed miracles himself, including bringing a deceased girl back to life.

The historians Tacitus and Suetonius report a healing miracle brought about by Emperor Vespasian . The narrative has the same structure as the healing miracles found in the New Testament. Suetonius himself states that the meaning of the miracle is that Vespasian's majesty is confirmed by God.

Miracles in christianity

Miracles in the New Testament

The New Testament contains various accounts of miracles that Jesus of Nazareth is said to have performed or to have happened to him. These are interpreted in Christian theology as signs of the will and the saving action of YHWH , the God of Israel .

The wonderful action of Jesus will

as the proclamation of this God ( Mk 2,12 EU ; Lk 7,16 EU ),
as a sign of Jesus' authority to act on behalf of this God ( Mk 2.10 EU ),
as the fulfillment of his promises ( Mt 11,5 EU ),
as the realization of the kingdom of God ( Lk 11.20 EU ),
as a sign of Jesus' special, unique relationship to this God, expressed for example in the confession You are the Christ! ( Mk 8.29 EU )

Roger that.

Healings of sick people , expelling unclean (evil) spirits and other miracles, to which Jesus instructs his followers ( Mk 6,7; 16,17 EU ) and which these are supposed to have accomplished in his discipleship, belong to the gifts of the Holy Spirit from the perspective of the early Christians (Charisms). For their opponents, it was sometimes a sign of a covenant with the devil ( Mk 3.22 EU ). A counter-model to the divinely gifted human being was the magician . Especially in Judaism, he was often viewed negatively as a charlatan and deceiver who was in covenant with Satan : This view was represented early on in the Gospels by Jesus' opponents ( Mk 3.22 EU ; Mt 27.63 EU ; Joh 7.12 EU ; 8 , 48 EU and others). It is reflected in the image of Jesus in the Talmud , which regards him as a seducer of the people to idolatry ( Deut 13 : 2-6 EU ), precisely because of his miracles, which he presupposes as fact . For the apostle Paul , wonderful abilities were only valuable if they served to overcome enmity and to build up the Christian community together, which he understood as the body of Christ ( Romans 12: 3–21 EU ).

Theological views

Late antiquity and medieval Christian theology often saw biblical miracles as direct, historical facts intended to prove God's intervention, his or Jesus' greatness and power. Catholic apologetics held this view up to modern times and viewed miracles as an indication of the truth of the faith. However, this is controversial in today's fundamental theology .
Reformation theology saw the final forgiveness through the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ as the main miracle that gave purpose and meaning to all other miracles.
Just as historical research is generally skeptical of reports of miracles , so is newer liberal theology of reports of miracles and predictions: It often interprets biblical reports of miracles in a figurative sense (e.g. open someone's eyes and ears because they were blind and deaf compared to Jesus' speech about the kingdom of God, which liberates us to be truly human and trust in God). In this sense, genus historically, miracles are regarded as a form with which a message of trust (a kerygma ) is to be conveyed. This approach is criticized by Klaus Berger , as there is no place for such a genre in a New Testament history of form based on ancient perceptions .
Rudolf Bultmann started from the scientifically shaped worldview of the modern age, which he considered incompatible with the mythical worldview of antiquity. He saw the real annoyance of the Christian message in the unconditional call to a decision for a new self-understanding that is no longer attached to the worldly. In order to expose this core, he advocated the program of "demythologizing" the New Testament. His saying became known:

"You cannot use electric light, make use of modern medical means and at the same time believe in the world of spirits and wonders of the New Testament."

Miracles in saints' legends

A relatively large number of mostly Latin written documents, which have survived from the Middle Ages, report miracles, especially the healing of the sick through the mediation of saints . These so-called “miracle reports” can be found as set pieces from legends of saints , for example in the lives of holy bishops.

Since the 1980s, historiography has considered miracle reports as important sources for the history of everyday life and mentality . Pilgrims seeking healing appear in these texts, which means that the reports provide information about working and living conditions, illnesses or dietary habits of those lower social classes, which otherwise rarely appear in the documents of those times.

Miracles in modern times

Roman Catholic Church

At pilgrimage sites there are repeated reports of miracles that are said to have been brought about through the intercession of certain saints . Well-known places of pilgrimage are u. a. Lourdes ( Marian apparitions and pilgrimage in Lourdes ), Fátima ( sun miracle ) and Altötting .
The so-called host miracles or Eucharistic miracles can only be found in the Catholic Church , the most famous of which is probably the Eucharistic Miracle of Lanciano from the eighth century. However, such events are also known from recent times, including primarily one that is said to have occurred on May 1, 1992 in the parish church of Santa Maria in the Almagro y Caballito district in the old town of Buenos Aires , and another in the parish church of St. Anthony from Padua in Sokółka, Poland in 2008.
Except in the case of martyrdom, the working of a miracle is a prerequisite for the beatification and canonization of a venerable servant of God .

Miracles in the Bahaitum

The miracles of the manifestations of God in the Baha'i religion are interpreted spiritually. Thus, for example, the resurrection of Lazarus by Jesus is interpreted as the resurrection from spiritual death - and not from physical death. It is true that the manifestations could, by virtue of their divine “authority”, work extra-natural miracles, but they did not, since this neither legitimized the claims of the manifestations nor did people spiritually educate them. Moreover, such miracles are only verifiable by those who are witnesses to the miracle. In its holy texts, the Baha'i religion gives a consistent interpretation of the symbolism in the miracles of Jesus and other revelators (e.g. Jonas , Moses , Mohammed ); see miracles of Jesus in the Baha'i religion .

literature

Klaus Berger : Are you allowed to believe in miracles? Gütersloher Verlagshaus, Gütersloh 1996, ISBN 3-579-01450-1
Jürgen Beyer: Prodigies . In: Encyclopedia of Fairy Tales . Concise dictionary for historical and comparative narrative research, Volume 10, Gruyter, Berlin / New York 2002, ISBN 3-11-016402-7 Sp. 1378-1388.
Philippe Cordez: treasure, memory, wonder. The objects of the churches in the Middle Ages , Regensburg 2015.
John Cornwell: Forces of Light and Darkness - Christian Miracles. Truth or imagination? , Heyne 1996.
Lorraine Daston : Miracles, Evidence, and Facts. On the history of rationality. Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 2001, ISBN 3-596-14763-8 .
Lorraine Daston, Katharine Park: Miracles and the Order of Nature. Eichborn Verlag, Berlin 2003.
Alexander CT Geppert and Till Kössler (eds.): Miracles. The poetics and politics of wonder in the 20th century . Suhrkamp Verlag, Berlin 2011. ISBN 978-3-518-29584-7
Richard Gramlich : The Miracles of God's Friends. Theologies and manifestations of the Islamic miracle of saints . In: Freiburger Islamstudien , Volume XI, Steiner, Wiesbaden 1987, ISBN 3-515-04487-6 .
Josef Hanauer: miracles or addiction to miracles? Apparitions, visions, prophecies, obsession. Fischer, Aachen 1997, ISBN 3-927854-70-0 .
Klaus Herbers , Lenka Jiroušková, Bernhard Vogel (eds.): Miracle reports of the early and high Middle Ages. Latin and German. With the collaboration of Clemens Heydenreich, René Hurtienne, Sofia Seeger and Bernhard Waldmann (Freiherr vom Stein Memorial Edition, Series A, Vol. 43). Darmstadt 2005.
Josef Imbach: miracles. An existential interpretation . Echter, Würzburg 1995. ISBN 3-429-01675-4 .
Robert Jütte : Belief in miracles in medicine. In: History of Alternative Medicine. From folk medicine to today's unconventional therapies. CH Beck, Munich 1996, ISBN = 3-406-40495-2, pp. 66–114 ( religious and magical medicine ), here: p. 66 f.
Ernst Keller, Marie-Luise Keller: The dispute about the miracles. Criticism and Interpretation of the Supernatural in Modern Times . Gütersloher Verlaghaus, Gütersloh 1968 (without ISBN ).
CS Lewis : miracles. A preliminary investigation . Hegner, Cologne and Olten 1952.
Ulrich Mann: The wonderful thing. Miracles, blessings and angels. In: Handbuch Systematischer Theologie Volume 17. Gütersloher Verlagshaus, Gütersloh 1979, ISBN 3-579-04946-1 .
Gustav Mensching : The miracle in the belief and superstition of the peoples. Leiden 1957 (classic religious studies presentation).
Wilhelm Schamoni : Miracles are facts. A documentation from canonization acts . Patris, Vallendar-Schoenstatt 1978 (without ISBN ).
Alfons Weiser : What the Bible calls miracles. Stuttgart 1988. (Non-fiction book on the reports of the Gospels), ISBN 3-460-31091-X .
Béla Weissmahr , Otto Knoch : Natural phenomena and miracles. In: Christian Faith in Modern Society, Volume 4. Freiburg im Breisgau 1982.

Web links

Wiktionary: Wunder - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Wikiquote: Miracles - Quotes

Commons : Miracles - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Remarks

↑ Marina Münkler : Experience of the foreign: The description of East Asia in the eyewitness accounts of the 13th and 14th centuries. Akademie Verlag, Berlin 2000, p. 151 ( online )
↑ Friedrich Kluge: Etymological Dictionary of the German Language , 20th edition, Berlin and New York 1967, reprint ibid. 1975, p. 869.
↑ This is discussed at Franz Graf-Stuhlhofer : In Search of the Historical Jesus. About the credibility of the Gospels and the doubts of the skeptics. Leun 2013, pp. 18–20: “Is it credible that so many miracles happened back then?”.
↑ Terms such as “miracle”, “miracle”, “paradox” or similar are missing in registers of relevant works, e. B. Klaus Bergmann u. a. (Ed.): Handbuch der Geschichtsdidaktik . 5th edition, Seelze-Velber 1997, or Chris Lorenz: Construction of the past. An introduction to the theory of history . Cologne u. a. 1997.
↑ Dietmar Pieper: "The sky is empty" . In: Der Spiegel . No. 17 , 2015, p. 40-48 ( online - April 20, 2019 ).
↑ Herodotus : Histories 4, 14.
↑ Philostrat : Life of Apollonios 1, 5.
↑ Philostrat : Life of Apollonios 4, 45.
^ Tacitus : Historien 4, 81; Suetonius : Vespasian 7.
↑ Gerd Theissen, Dagmar Winter: The question of criteria in Jesus research. From the difference criterion to the plausibility criterion . Friborg, Göttingen 1997.
↑ Gerd Theissen: Original Christian miracle stories. A contribution to the historical research into the synoptic gospels . Gütersloh 1974
^ Graf-Stuhlhofer: In search of the historical Jesus. 2013, pp. 18-20.
↑ New Testament and Mythology. The problem of demythologizing the New Testament proclamation. In: Kerygma and Mythos I , ed. by HW Bartsch, Hamburg 1967, p. 17f.
↑ Polish Archdiocese confirms 'Eucharist Miracles' from Sokólka on kath.net .
^ Proclamation of the Faith for Adults. German edition of the Dutch catechism . Utrecht 1968, p. 126.

[1] Marina Münkler : Experience of the foreign: The description of East Asia in the eyewitness accounts of the 13th and 14th centuries. Akademie Verlag, Berlin 2000, p. 151 ( online )

[2] Friedrich Kluge: Etymological Dictionary of the German Language , 20th edition, Berlin and New York 1967, reprint ibid. 1975, p. 869.

[3] This is discussed at Franz Graf-Stuhlhofer : In Search of the Historical Jesus. About the credibility of the Gospels and the doubts of the skeptics. Leun 2013, pp. 18–20: “Is it credible that so many miracles happened back then?”.

[4] Terms such as “miracle”, “miracle”, “paradox” or similar are missing in registers of relevant works, e. B. Klaus Bergmann u. a. (Ed.): Handbuch der Geschichtsdidaktik . 5th edition, Seelze-Velber 1997, or Chris Lorenz: Construction of the past. An introduction to the theory of history . Cologne u. a. 1997.

[spiegel-2019-17-40-5] Dietmar Pieper: "The sky is empty" . In: Der Spiegel . No. 17 , 2015, p. 40-48 ( online - April 20, 2019 ).

[6] Herodotus : Histories 4, 14.

[7] Philostrat : Life of Apollonios 1, 5.

[8] Philostrat : Life of Apollonios 4, 45.

[9] Tacitus : Historien 4, 81; Suetonius : Vespasian 7.

[10] Gerd Theissen, Dagmar Winter: The question of criteria in Jesus research. From the difference criterion to the plausibility criterion . Friborg, Göttingen 1997.

[11] Gerd Theissen: Original Christian miracle stories. A contribution to the historical research into the synoptic gospels . Gütersloh 1974

[12] Graf-Stuhlhofer: In search of the historical Jesus. 2013, pp. 18-20.

[13] New Testament and Mythology. The problem of demythologizing the New Testament proclamation. In: Kerygma and Mythos I , ed. by HW Bartsch, Hamburg 1967, p. 17f.

[14] Polish Archdiocese confirms 'Eucharist Miracles' from Sokólka on kath.net .

[15] Proclamation of the Faith for Adults. German edition of the Dutch catechism . Utrecht 1968, p. 126.