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<\/a><\/p>\nReligious believers have to believe in miracles. It comes with the territory.<\/p>\n
So, what is a miracle? It\u2019s an event that does not follow the course of nature\u2019s laws of cause and effect. Something happens that cannot be explained by saying, \u201cWell, that happened because\u2026.\u201d If you can fill in the blank with some natural process, then it\u2019s not a miracle. But if you can\u2019t, then either it\u2019s a miracle or you aren\u2019t smart enough to understand the cause-effect relationship.<\/p>\n
Sometimes miracles, like beauty, are in the eye of the beholder, especially if the beholder is a believer. For instance, let\u2019s say a guy is driving to the airport to go on a business trip, gets stuck in a traffic jam and misses his plane. The plane takes off, crashes, and everybody on board is killed.<\/p>\n
Now a nonbeliever would say, \u201cWhew, dodged a bullet.\u201d Or maybe, \u201cLuck of the draw\u2026\u201d But a believer would say, \u201cOh, thank you Lord for saving me! It\u2019s a miracle!\u201d If the individual is devout and self-righteous, he might think that he was saved by God because he is a person of very special virtue. The others on the plane apparently didn\u2019t measure up.\u00a0 I think most believers would not have such an exalted opinion of themselves, and would seek some other explanation.\u00a0 Some might think that God has a special \u201cplan\u201d for them.<\/p>\n
A believer who has had such an experience would probably think about it often and wonder\u2026what was God\u2019s plan? But as life continues and no special plan is revealed, would it occur to him that maybe it was just random chance and God had absolutely nothing to do with it?<\/p>\n
Nah, probably not, and I will tell you why.<\/p>\n
That speculation about random chance would be a first step on the slippery slope of doubt. Believers of all faiths are carefully conditioned to avoid sliding down that slope, with dire warnings of eternal punishment for sliders.<\/p>\n
If a believer dared to take that first step in spite of the warnings, the next step would be unavoidable: If God didn\u2019t cause that plane crash, maybe He doesn\u2019t control anything that happens on the earth\u2026or to expand it just a little bit\u2026in the Universe.\u00a0Now, the slope becomes a lot steeper, and as slippery as glare ice. No matter how hard he tries, he cannot stop his continuing slide to the bottom, where he finds a sign that reads:<\/p>\n
WELCOME TO THE LAND OF LOGIC AND REASON.
\nTHE FACT THAT YOU ARE HERE PROVES THAT YOURS IS WORKING.
\nIF GOD HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH ANYTHING THAT HAPPENS ANYWHERE
\nTHEN EITHER GOD DOES NOT EXIST\u2026OR IS IRRELEVANT.<\/p>\n
And then, he realizes that the slippery slope and the sign are illusions created by the power of his own intellect in its desperate struggle to escape from the prison of his religious faith.<\/p>\n
But, as I said, most believers would be afraid to take that first step.<\/p>\n