SCIENCE VERSUS MIRACLES
Authentication of Religious Truths
MAN finds himself in a world where there is creation everywhere but the Creator is apparently unseen. There is design in this world but the designer is nowhere to be found. There are events happening in this world but the one who makes it all happen is hidden from our sights. The whole Universe is working like a magnificent industry but the master engineer who designed this industry cannot be seen even with the help of the most powerful telescopes.
The Prophets taught that behind everything we perceive, there is an unperceivable Supreme Being.
To answer these very questions, Prophets were sent to this world. In all ages, the Prophets taught that behind everything we perceive, there is an unperceivable Supreme Being. This is God, our Lord and Creator, so acknowledge Him and worship Him. In this sense, the role of the prophets in some respects was an inferential role. They showed man that through observations in nature and the universe, he should use his intelligence and derive the inference of an unobservable Creator, thus laying the foundations of belief in God.
In order to authenticate this inferential role the Prophets showed miracles to their people. The Quran speaks about these miracles in these words:
We sent our messengers with evidence ...
THE QURAN 57: 25
These Prophets showed supernatural miracles so that man could believe that the message they brought to them was the true divine message. For instance, Prophet Moses came to the people of Egypt between the 16th and 15th century BC. The Pharaoh of the time, Rameses II was the ruler. He challenged Moses saying:
If you are a true messenger of God show me a miracle.
THE QURAN 7: 106
On this demand of the Pharaoh, Moses threw his staff on the ground which miraculously turned into a slithering serpent.
Muhammad the Prophet of Islam received his prophet-hood in 610 AD in Makkah. All the Prophets before him followed the method of demonstrating supernatural miracles as evidence towards the truthfulness of their message. But with the Prophet of Islam, who was the last link in the chain of Prophets, the method of supernatural miracles came to an end (THE QURAN 17: 59).
The original text of the prophetic religion is preserved and the language in which this original text was revealed is also preserved.
After the Prophet of Islam, the system of prophethood together with the supernatural miracles they demonstrated was abolished. There will be no further Prophets. Now the prophetic task is continuing through the followers of the Prophet. This is because after the Prophet of Islam, the divine religion in its original form became a completely preserved religion; so much so that now, there is no question of any distortion or changes to this divine message. Now the original text of the prophetic religion is preserved and the language in which this original text was revealed is also preserved.
Now the question is, what is the substitute for the miracles of the Prophets of earlier times? In the earlier days, the truth of the prophetic message was authenticated through miracles. Now, what are the means of authenticating the Prophet's message? The answer to this question is modern scientific knowledge. Present day Science is the replacement for the miracles of ancient times. Now, Science plays the authenticating role that in earlier times was provided by miracles. These two periods of authentication of the divine message of religion have been clearly mentioned in the Quran. Regarding the first period of authentication the Quran says:
We sent our messengers with evidence ...
THE QURAN 57: 25
The second period of authentication is mentioned in the Quran in the future tense. In this regard the Quran says:
In time we shall show them Our signs in the Universe and
within themselves so that it will become clear unto them
that this [revelation] is indeed the truth.
THE QURAN 41: 53
The Prophet of Islam brought the divine message to mankind in the first quarter of the 7th century A.D., and the scientific age appeared a thousand years later. This scientific age was not a mere co-incidence but was the direct result of the revolutionary message conveyed by the Prophet. With the Prophet’s message, for the first time in the history of mankind, the domination of nature worship was abolished. After the end of the worship of nature, a new process of exploration began. The result of this process was the scientific revolution. In ancient times man had taken the wonders of nature as objects of worship. What was thus revered as divine was not treated as a subject of study and research. In this way, the spirit of enquiry was missing due to this mental block.
After the revolutionary message of the Prophet of Islam, a new process in history began. Man became engaged in the research and the study of nature. This continued relentlessly till the scientific discoveries of the modern age. The hitherto hidden secrets of nature were unveiled as natural events. The Quran refers to this as 'the appearance of signs in nature and universe'. Modern Science is the other name for Natural Sciences. It was the manifestation of the predictions of the Quran. Looking at it in this context, modern Science is a replacement for the miracles of ancient times. It has become the theology of the true religion. Modern Science now provides the veracity to religion that in earlier periods was provided by supernatural miracles.
Modern Science now provides the veracity to religion that in earlier periods was provided by supernatural miracles.
There are two aspects of modern science — Theoretical Sciences and Technical Sciences. Theoretical Science uses modern methods to discover the realities of nature. In contrast, Technical Science is the practical application of the scientific discoveries of Theoretical Science. Technical Science led to the development of modern technology which makes use of machines. In this matter, our reference is with regard to Theoretical Science and not Technical Science. According to one Hadith, this matter is mentioned in the following words:
Amongst the Prophets, every Prophet was given such signs that his contemporaries would accept or acknowledge, and to me was given the miracle of revelation (Quran). Therefore, I hope that on the day of judgement the people who believe in my message will be more in number.
The fact is that there was little development of human knowledge in early ages. Hence, it was not possible to verify the authenticity of divine religion by means of human knowledge. That is why, in early ages, supernatural miracles were shown by the Prophets. These miracles were limited in nature, being restricted to the contemporaries of the Prophets. But with the revolution that came to this world after the Quran, there was a gradual and continuous development of human knowledge. Then it became possible that through human knowledge itself true religion could be verified and presented to the people.
The argument that the evidence of design in this world proves there exists a designer, is a similar kind of argument as any scientific argument used in the material world.
Another difference between these two periods is that, although the miracles were an experience of veneration for those who witnessed them, the aspect of conviction through reasoning was missing. In the later periods when it became possible for the verification of divine religion through human knowledge, it was natural that this type of verification in contrast was universal. It became possible for every human community to understand and acknowledge the message of the Prophet and accept it on its own rationality. Another natural outcome of this was that the numbers of people who would accept this message could potentially be much more from amongst the later periods.
Ancient miraculous verification and modern scientific verification have a common feature wherein both use the inferential method to authenticate religious truths. In ancient times when the Prophets demonstrated sensory miracles, it was not such that the miracle was a mirror or a perfect representation through which the Prophets divine message became clear. If a human being has performed an act that is beyond human power, then it could be inferred that he is doing so with the help of God. Consequently, it could also be inferred that the message that he is presenting was also from God.
It is the same matter with scientific arguments for religious truths. In scientific arguments, it does not happen that what is presented is the direct demonstrable proof for the premise. Here also, it so happens that the argument presented, indirectly provides the inference for the real premise to be understood or acknowledged. However, modern scientific arguments have one superior facet as they are established on the basis of rational axioms of the people.
This difference was the result of developments in nuclear science. Early physical sciences were limited to the macro world or the macro universe. At that time it was believed that everything had a measurable physical form. Developments in the 20th century allowed man to penetrate the micro world and changed this scenario. Now it is known that matter in its ultimate form is so small that it could only be considered as 'waves of probability'.
These developments in the nuclear science created a revolution in knowledge, one aspect of which was that the standard of rational argument changed. Now, the inferential argument was as accepted and acknowledged as a direct argument. Knowledge had reached a stage where a direct observable argument was not possible. Hence, it became mandatory that inferential argument be given the same standing as a direct argument so that the new discoveries of the micro world could be further developed. These developments of human knowledge made it possible for religious truths to be presented in the same manner as those used in the material world. For instance, the argument that the evidence of design in this world proves there exists a designer, is a similar kind of argument as any scientific argument used in the material world.
It has become possible for man to use supporting arguments from rational human knowledge to establish the truth of the divine message.
Now modern scientific knowledge has taken the place of the miracles presented by the early Prophets. Religious truths which were presented on the weight of supernatural miracles in ancient times can now be understood on the basis of accepted human knowledge. Today's bearer of truth does not need to show any miracles in order to support his message. It has become possible for him to use supporting arguments from rational human knowledge to establish the truth of his message. He can address the modern mind on the basis of the same knowledge that has already been accepted and acknowledged as true.