Miracles in Other Religions

Miracles in Judaism

Biblical Judaism: There is no conflict between the claims of biblical Judaism and Christianity since Christianity fulfills the predictions of biblical Judaism about the Messiah.

Post-Biblical Judaism: There is a direct conflict with Christianity since the Jews reject Jesus as their Messiah, and Christians accept Him. There are no miracles that support Jewish claims that Jesus is not the Messiah. There is also no other widely recognized central figure in post-biblical Judaism who claimed to be the Messiah and had verified miracles to support this claim. There have, of course, been many Messianic pretenders, but none have provided miracles nor gained a wide acceptance in Judaism.

Josephus records a miracle in the Jewish War (AD 75-79), which was alleged to have happened only ten to fifteen years earlier. It was as bright as noon at 3 AM, and a cow gave birth to a lamb. Josephus added that I would have dismissed it as an invention had it not been vouched for by eyewitnesses and followed by disasters that bore out the signs. However, unlike biblical miracles, it is based on hearsay evidence, which is unreliable. There is no confirmation of Josephus’s story from another reliable source. There was no Messianic truth claim connected with it. Unlike the virgin birth of a human from a human being, this story is contrary to God’s ordained way, that each thing multiplies after is kind. (Gen 1:24)

Miracles about Buddha

There are claims of Buddha performing miracles, but they show signs of being legends for several reasons: they are not contemporary accounts but later additions. Buddhism itself is a non-theistic religion, which does not allow for supernatural acts by its very nature since it denies a supernatural God. These miracles do not have predictive elements associated with them. They are not connected with any truth claim to be a prophet of God. C.S. Lewis says: But what could be more absurd than that he who came to teach us that nature is an illusion from which we must escape, should occupy himself in producing effects on the natural level, that he who comes to wake us from a nightmare should add to the nightmare? The more we respect his teachings, the less we can accept his miracles.

Miracles abut Hare Krishna (said to be a supernatural incarnation of God)

Krishna did not claim to be an incarnation of the true (theistic) God- but of a pantheistic God. No contemporary accounts of Krishna’s multiple miracles support any such claim. He fulfilled no specific or multiple long-range prophecies. Krishna did not live a sinless life. Krishna did not predict or accomplish the physical resurrection from the dead as Jesus did.

Miracle claims for Apollonius of Tyana (d AD 98)

It is held that Apollonius claimed to be the Son of God and could do miracles to support his claim. In the life of Apollonius, Philostratus records post-death miracle stories, including appearances and deification (apotheosis).The biography of Philostratus is the only source of the life of Apollonius, and it ends with his death, not resurrection (as Jesus’ biographies do). There is nothing supernatural in Apollonius’ biography, either in terms of claims of deity or miracles done to prove such a claim. The post-death miracle stories are not part of the biography. They are called stories or legends by his biographer Philostratus. Damis, the alleged source for these stories, is most likely a nonexistent person who is used as a literary device. Philostratus’s writing style was a popular literary form of the day called romance or romance fiction. It is not to be taken as literally or historically true. Philostratus was not an eyewitness but was commissioned to compose his book by Julia Domna, wife of the Roman emperor Septimus, some 120 years after Apollonius’s death. A possible motive for the publication of Philostratus’s work was a desire to counteract the growing influence of Jesus. The miracle stories about Apollonius are contradictory. Some say he died in Ephesus; others in Lindus or Crete and then appeared later. 

Miracle claims for Muhammad

Alleged miracles in the Qur’an

General Claim: Muslims use Sura 6:35 to show that Muhammad could do miracles. It reads, “If their spurning is hard on thy mind, yet if thou wert able to seek a tunnel in the ground or a ladder to the skies and bring them a sign- what good?

• Response: This is hypothetical, If thou wert able… It does not say he was able. Second, it implies that he could not. Otherwise, why did the charge say it was hard on thy mind? Third why offer the Qur’an as a miracle, if he could do miracles of nature, as Jesus did? Fourth why did Muhammad refuse to do miracles when challenged to do so (Sura 3:191-84)

The alleged splitting of the moon. The claim: Sura 54:1-2 reads: The hour of judgment is nigh, and the moon is cleft asunder. But if they see a sign, they turn away, and say, “This is but transient magic.”

• Response: Muhammad is not mentioned in this passage. Second, the Qur’an does not actually call this a miracle (mudjiza), using only the word sign (ayah).  Third, if it were a miracle, it would contradict other passages that claim Muhammad did not perform feats of nature like this (3:181-84). Third, a sign like his would have been universally observed throughout the world, but there is no evidence that it was. Fourth, even some Muslim scholars say this is about the resurrection of the last days, not a miracle during Muhammad’s day. The phrase” the hour of judgment refers to the end times

Alleged ascension into heaven. The claim: this Isra story or night journey is allegedly about Muhammad being transported to Jerusalem. Sura 17:1 reads: Glory to God who did ask His Servant for a journey by night from the sacred mosque to the farthest mosque whose precincts we did bless- in order that we might show him some our signs.

• Response: Even many Muslim scholars do not take this literally. Qur’an translator Yusuf Ali says It opens with a mystic vison of the ascension of the Holy Prophet. Second, according an early Islamic tradition, Muhammad’s wife, Aisha, reported “the apostle’s body remained where it was but God removed his spirt by night”. Third, even taken literally it lacks testability and has no apologetic value Third it does not meet the Muslim test for a true miracle.

Alleged Supernatural Victory: Of the victory at Badr we read in Sura 5:12 O ye who believe! Call in remembrance the favor of God unto you when certain men formed the design to stretch out their hands against you, but God held back their hands from you: So fear God (Suras 3&8). According to Islamic tradition, the miracle involved God sending three thousand angels to help in the battle and the miraculous rescue of Muhammad just before a Meccan was going to kill him with a sword.

• Response: Many Muslim scholars believe Sura 8 is speaking of another event and is to be taken figuratively as God casting fear into the heart of Muhammad’s enemy. Second Sura 5 is taken by some to refer to another event, possibly the attempted assassination of Muhammad at Usfan. Third, Only Sura 3 mentioned Badr, and it says nothing about it being a miracle. Fourth, it does not speak of a miracle that confirms Muhammad’s prophetic credentials. Fifth, If a military victory confirms his prophethood, was the military defeat at Uhud a sign he was not a prophet (They pulled out two links of chain from Muhammads wound and two of his front teeth fell out in the process.) Sixth, The Israeli six day war in 1967 was one of the quickest and most decisive battles in the annals of modern warfare. Yet no Muslim would consider it a miraculous sign of divine approval of Israel over Islam.

Alleged splitting of Muhammad’s chest: The claim is that Islamic tradition claims that a Muhammad’s birth or just before his ascension, Gabriel cut open Muhammad’s chest, removed and cleansed his heart, the filled it with wisdom , and placed it back in the prophet’s chest. Sura 94:1-2, 8, which reads, Have we not expanded thee thy breast? And removed from thee thy burden …and to thy Lord turn (all) thy attention.

• Response: However, even most conservative Islamic scholars take this passage as a figure of speech describing the great anxiety Muhammad experienced in his early years at Mecca. The Quranic commentator Yusuf Ali said, The breast is symbolically the seat of knowledge and of the highest feeling of love and affection.

Alleged predictions in the Qur’an

Prediction of Roman Victory: The Qur’an supposedly predicted the Roman victory over the Persian army at Issus. Sura 30:2-4 reads: The Roman Empire has been defeated- in a land close by but they (even) after (This) defeat of theirs, Will soon be victorious- within a few years.

• Response: Ali says “a few years” means three to nine years, but some argue that the real victory did not come until thirteen or fourteen years after the prophecy. Second: The defeat of the Romans by the Persians in the capture of Jerusalem took place about AD 614 or 615. The counter offensive did not begin until AD 622 and the victory was not complete unto AD 625. This would be 10 or 11 years and not a few spoken by Muhammad. Third Uthman’s edition of the Qur’an had no vowel points (they were added much later). Hence, in this prophecy the word sayaghlibuna, “they shall defeat,” could have been rendered with the change of two vowels, sayughlabuna, “they shall be defeated. Fourth, Even so the prophecy is less than spectacular since it is not that unusual. One would have expected the defeated Romans to bounce back in victory. Fifth, It took little more than a perceptive reading of the trends of the time to forecast such an event. At best, it could have been a good guess. Sixth, there are no repeated long-range predictions in the Qur’an such as the bible has.

The claimed Ten Year Persecution: Sura 89:2 says “By the nights twice five” which is take by some to be a prediction of the ten year of persecution early Muslims experienced.

• Response: This is a far-fetched interpretation since even the great translator of the Qur’an, Abdullah Yusuf Ali, admitted that by the ten nights are usually understood the first ten nights of Zul-Hajj the sacred season of Pilgrimage

Alleged miracles in the Hadith

The Claim: There are numerous miracle stories in the Hadith (Traditions), including: Providing water for10,000 troops. Turning water into milk. Trees, wolves, and Mts. Saluting Muhammad. Feeding a thousand men with one woman’s small meal. Cursing and enemy whose horse then sank up to its stomach in hard ground. Turning a branch into a steel sword. Healing of the broken leg of a companion

• Response: None of these are contemporary accounts, and most are one to two hundred years after the time of the events. Second, the most reliable collector, Bukhari, admitted that of the 300,000 stories in the Hadith less than 10,000 might be true. That means over 290,000 are admitted to be false! Third, there is no agreement among Muslims as to which ones are true. There is no one canon of authenticity for them accepted by all Muslims. Fourth, they follow the same pattern as the apocryphal miracles of Christ from a century or two after His death, they are legendary embellishments. Fifth, these stories only appeared after Christian apologist pointed out the superiority of Christianity because of it miraculous confirmation.  Sixth, Many of them bear an amazing but embellished resemblance to miracles of Jesus found in the Gospels. Seventh, they are all contrary to Qur’an where Muhammad repeatedly refused to do miracles (3:181-84, 4:153, 6:8-9). Eighth, Even Yusuf Ali admitted that Muhammad did not perform any miracle in the sense of a reversing of Nature. Ninth, none of them fit the nine Muslim criteria for a miracle that can confirm a prophet’s claim.

Nine Muslim criteria for a true miracle

• It is an act of God that can’t be done by any creature.
• It is contrary to the customary course of things
• It is aimed at proving the authenticity of that prophet.
• It proceeds in the exact manner announced
• It occurs only through the hand of a prophet
• In no way disavows Muhammad’s prophetic claim
• It is accompanied by a challenge to reduplicate it
• It is announced in advance
• It cannot be duplicated by anyone present

None of the Hadith stories even come close to meeting all these criteria..

Alleged miraculous nature of the Qur’an

The Claim: Many Muslims claim that the Qur’an is Muhammad’s miracle. They insist that an uneducated person (Sura7:157) like Muhammad could not have produced such an eloquent piece of literature.

Response: First, a literary masterpiece is not a miracle. No laws of nature are suspended to produce one. Second, Muhammad did not write the Qur’an. It was written down by others, and edited by the third Caliph, ‘Uthman after Muhammad’s death. Third, some critics have shown that it is not a literary masterpiece but contains may grammatical errors (Ali Dashti, Twenty-Three Years) Fourth, formally uneducated persons sometimes have great gifts of eloquence. Fifth beauty is not a test for truth. Error can be beautifully expressed, and truth can be put in an ugly form.  Sixth, if literary beauty is a test for divine origin then Shakespeare’s and Homer’s works are divinely inspired as well (which Muslims deny). No Muslim would accept a beautiful gift that was immoral or insulted Muhammed. Therefore, beauty is not proof of truth.

Conclusion:

Of all the world’s great religions, Christianity alone meets the criteria necessary to establish miraculous confirmation of its truth claims. Christ is the only great world religious leader for whom we have reliable, contemporary documents of his teaching and miracles. Christ is the only one of them who claimed to be God. Christ is the only one who provided reliably established miracles to confirm His truth claims. Hence Christ alone has been confirmed to be God in human flesh.