although it may lead into new experiments or a pursuit of a deeper
understanding. Such was the discovery by J.J. Thomson of the electron in
1897, which led to a desire for a better understanding of the atom’s nucleus
achieved in subsequent decades. There is nothing beyond this. Science
famously, and somewhat mistakenly, is not the answer to the “why”
questions, but to explain the “what” and the “how” questions. It is primarily
a description of the universe, not an explanation of why it works in one way,
as opposed to another. There are three forms of electrons, differentiated by
mass: the electron, muon, and tau. There is no accepted theory which says
why there are only three and not two or eight.
But for the religious, there is an understanding beyond the conclusion of the
event. The statue of the Virgin Mary wept… because God ordained it to be
so… so that…why? And the “why” is where you can have many different
perspectives. The miraculous event can be a sign to prove God’s
compassion, or to give a sign to believers in troubled times, or to show
God’s grief at man’s latest iniquity, like allowing gay marriage or legally
charging the Catholic Church with child abuse, etc. There are usually many
understandings and interpretations of the miraculous event unless the event
comes with its own interpretation, as with the Fatima prophecies for the
Catholic Church.
In conclusion, is there any common ground for the miraculous as between
religion and science, or are they hopelessly at odds with each other? They
both claim to appreciate the majesty of such an event, and they both seek
to understand it. But, put simplistically, while science seeks the “how” of the
occurrence, the religious jump to the “why” assuming the “how” to be a
foregone conclusion. It is not a conflict, so much as a total avoidance of each
other’s raison d’etre. There is a role for philosophy in our lives, as it’s
unalterably a human inclination to seek to understand a meaning in an
occurrence, even where none exists, but the religious view of the miraculous
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