How Can We Answer One Who Denies Miracle-Working?
The One Who created the universe and made its operation dependent on certain laws that He established, is certainly able to change those laws for His special, beloved servant and envoy
The One Who created the universe and made its operation dependent on certain laws that He established, is certainly able to change those laws for His special, beloved servant and envoy. Especially in our day, when scientists have already abandoned the mechanistic notion of the universe and defend relativity in its operation, it is not a rational or scientific attitude to, on the basis of absolute determinism or causality, deny miracles. Furthermore, miracles do not occur as completely free from material causes, however slight and insignificant they are. Given that we see how God Almighty causes the smallest things to produce very great entities—He creates man from a microscopic sperm and enables man’s memory to contain as much knowledge as can fill a library—how can we dare to deny miracles? Is not the creation of man who, though essentially so weak as to be defeated by a microbe, is endowed with such faculties as to make computers which keep in their memories as much knowledge as can fill libraries, a lesser miracle than enabling a servant of His to give some food or drink a blessed increase. Indeed, is not every occurrence in the universe, every act of God, really a miracle, the like of which we are unable to make?
The miracles of the Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings, are so certain that they have been unanimously confirmed and reported by the authorities of Hadith. A miracle is the confirmation by the Creator of his Prophethood.
The noble Prophet, upon him be peace and blessings, declared that he was a Prophet and, in proof of his Prophethood, he presented the glorious Qur’an and nearly a thousand miracles. Those miracles are as certain to have occurred as the fact that he declared his Prophethood. It undeniably proves the occurrence of those miracles that even the most obstinate of the unbelievers, as related in some places in the Qur’an, charged him with sorcery. Unable to deny the miracles, they took them to be—God forbid!—sorcery, in order to excuse their persistence in unbelief or to mislead their followers. The miracles of the Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings, are so certain that they have been unanimously confirmed and reported by the authorities of Hadith. A miracle is the confirmation by the Creator of his Prophethood. It has the effects of the words, You have spoken the truth. If, for instance, one claims in the presence of the ruler himself that the ruler has appointed him to such and such a position, the word ‘Yes’ uttered by the ruler will be sufficient to prove his claim. Further, if the ruler changes his usual practice and attitude at his request, then this will mean a firmer confirmation of his claim. It is in the same way that the noble Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, claimed that he was the envoy of the Creator of the universe, and God, the Creator, in turn, changed His unbroken order at his prayer and request so that he could work miracles in order to prove his claim.
Denial of the miracles amounts to the denial of God’s existence and the Prophethood of Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings, as well as the Divine authorship of the Qur’an.
Denial of the miracles amounts to the denial of God’s existence and the Prophethood of Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings, as well as the Divine authorship of the Qur’an. In fact, such a denial is completely absurd and meaningless, for while a single evidence is enough to prove a claim, its denial requires an overall investigation through all times and places. For example, if one claims that swans may also be black, in order to prove this claim, it is enough for one to find and show a single black swan. But if you claim that there cannot be any black swans, you will have to show all the swans from the beginning to the end of time. So, denial is something almost impossible to prove. The like of one who dares to deny the miracles, which billions of believers, including hundreds of thousands of saints, scholars and scientists, have confirmed since the Prophet’s claim of Prophethood, is the like of him who sees closed only one of the thousand doors of a magnificent palace and concludes that it is impossible to enter the palace.
Almost all of the Prophets worked miracles
Almost all of the Prophets worked miracles. For centuries, millions of Jews and billions of Christians have confirmed the miracles of Moses and Jesus respectively. When compared to the other Prophets, what shortcoming has the Prophet Muhammad that those who confirm Moses’ speaking to God and Jesus’ raising the dead by God’s leave and ascension to heavens, dare to deny Muhammad’s miracles?
Denial of the miracles is unscientific insofar as such a denial is a judgment or conclusion which must be based on concrete proof.
The creation of Adam and Eve, as well as that of Jesus, is a miracle. God excluded their creation from the law of birth. Although currently entangled in materialistic notions, science will one day have to attribute the origin of life to a Divine miracle. Besides, it is highly questionable whether it is scientific to label as myth the beliefs or concepts or events which the sciences are unable to explain
Sciences ‘walk’ on the feet of theories and develop through ‘trial and error’ to investigate those theories. There are numerous established facts which sciences once regarded as false, just as what were once believed to be established facts are now known as fallacies. Also, there are many other things whose existence we accept unquestionably but cannot establish scientifically. Denial of the miracles is unscientific insofar as such a denial is a judgment or conclusion which must be based on concrete proof. No one can deny, whether basing on sciences or not, the miracles of the Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings.
In order to decide something as reasonable or not, whose intellect will serve as a judge?
Some may regard miracles as unreasonable. However, the reason or intellect has no capacity to grasp everything in existence. Second, there are not two persons in the world who have the same intellectual capacity. That is, there is no one who has the same intellectual capacity with another. So, in order to decide something as reasonable or not, whose intellect will serve as a judge? The Qur’an declares: Whomsoever We will, we raise in degrees. Over every man of knowledge is one who knows better (12:76).
God the Almighty is not bound by the laws He has established for the operation of the universe. Therefore, whenever He wishes, He can change those laws or can act and create without the means of any laws.
Thirdly, the magnificent order, harmony and purposefulness in existence decisively point to the One Who has an absolute knowledge, will and power. That One, God the Creator, disposes existence however He wishes. He is not bound by the laws He has established for the operation of the universe. Therefore, whenever He wishes, He can change those laws or can act and create without the means of any laws. So, what behooves man’s intellect is to discover those laws. God has not given man the intellect so that he should judge His acts. The capacity of the intellect is limited, therefore something limited cannot judge the infinite.
The finer or more refined matter is, the more speedy time and movement is.
Time varies or changes according to the dimensions of existence and places. For example, the extend of time is not the same in the world and other planets. Also, the finer or more refined matter is, the more speedy time and movement is. For example, his spirit moves much faster than man himself. Also, the imagining faculty can travel through all spheres within a few seconds.
All the physical and intellectual powers and capacities are included in a single, absolute Power. If that Power is able to whatever It wishes, then why should we not believe in miracles?
Again, as people vary from each other according to the power of each, there is also a great difference between the capacities of species. Man is much more powerful than an ant or bee but there are some things which an ant or bee does easily while a man cannot. Also, invisible things or beings like angels and jinn, an even storms and gales, may be much more powerful than human beings. So, all the physical and intellectual powers and capacities are included in a single, absolute Power. If that Power is able to whatever It wishes, then why should we not believe in miracles?
What is unreasonable or unscientific is to deny miracles, not to affirm them.
We witness, even experience, certain events that we regard as miraculous. Many things occur that we cannot explain with the law of causality. Furthermore, physics asserts today that whatever exists is a wave in continuous motion and therefore it is not possible to say that a second later its existence will be in the same state as it is in now. So, the law of causality is only a veil before the Divine operations so that people do not directly attribute to God certain disagreeable things and events. Therefore, what is unreasonable or unscientific is to deny miracles, not to affirm them.
This article has been adapted from Risale- i Nur Collection.