Miracles

Another example of supposed "miracles" happening today as I opened my morning newspaper with the incorrect story regarding all the miners being found alive. Unfortunate turn of events. A terrible accident, which likely could have been avoided.

On the drive home last night, I was listening to CNN (on XM radio), and I heard the announcer talk about hoping for a "miracle" in the situation. They did an analysis of possible causes and the unlikelihood that anyone survived the explosion and resulting carbon monoxide and lack of breathable air.

Miracle invokes religion and God. Right?

from: http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=50884&dict=CALD
miracle
noun [C]
an unusual and mysterious event that is thought to have been caused by a god, or any very surprising and unexpected event.

Or from Oxford

miracle • noun 1 an extraordinary and welcome event attributed to a divine agency. 2 a remarkable and very welcome occurrence. 3 an outstanding example, specimen, or achievement. — ORIGIN Latin miraculum ‘object of wonder’.

I really cringed at this use of miracle to describe a fortunate happening. The question that crossed my mind is why we don't seem to attribute the 12 of 13 who died to the opposite of miracle and make God responsible for that too. If God is in charge, then if he performs a "miracle" to save them, then why can't he be accused of "murder" or maybe a less severe term like "negligent disregard for their lives?."

Why does God get off the hook for death, but get all the credit for someone surviving against the odds?

Perhaps the users of such a word are simply saying "outrageously lucky" or "incredibly they survived this ordeal" when they use the word miracle, but I don't think so. When I hear "miracle", then it suggests the supernatural was involved.

Something to think about.

God Scorecard on this tragedy:
1 miracle 11 deaths (and many very distraught, grieving families)

Seems God is behind in this one. See me when an asteroid pummels into earth and wipes out half the population. Oh, that's right, the all loving, all caring, all good God acts in mysterious ways and we probably did something to bring it on. Just talk to Pat Robertson or Jerry Falwell.

(A more reasonable explanation is that the universe is just humming along with no active God who watches over us a protects us, but instead we are just carbon life forms and randomly we may perish tomorrow or 2,000 years from now, but it is not attributable to anything except those random forces. That or it's God's fault? You can't have it both ways. Either God creates all life and takes it away, or he doesn't do either. I know, the Christians will talk about eternal life if I am saved and those miners are in a better place, away from the hardship that is life (at times) and all the doubts and questioning, etc. But all that is just conjecture. We really don't know - why - because NOBODY really KNOWS!)