What’s In A Miracle?

Passages: Isaiah 1:21-31; Rom 7:25-8:11, Mt. 12:38-45
Ընթերցուածքներ՝ Եսայ. Ա 21-31;  Հռոմ. Է 25- Ը 11; Մատ. ԺԲ 38-45

In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Amen!

A few years ago, the Greek Orthodox Church down the street revealed on the News that they had a “weeping icon”. This miraculous event drew faithful and skeptics from all over the city. I remember I went to see it as did many of you. A few years ago, there was another Church in Cicero where this same miracle occurred – the icon of the Holy Virgin Mary began to weep oil. I’m going to be honest my dears, when I hear about such miracles, I don’t always jump out of my seat to go and see. I’m not a skeptic, I very much believe in miracles. I have witnessed several miracles myself; miracles that medicine and science could not explain; miracles perhaps some of you yourselves have experienced. The Holy Scriptures, the lives of the saints are full of stories of miracles, healings, strength, and most importantly of all – resurrection. Yet, as Orthodox Christians, miracles are not something we look for to validate or witness to our faith in Christ.

Rather, miracles for us Orthodox Christians are something to be optimistically cautious about, meaning we need to understand what’s in a miracle. Several years ago, a young man was at a Church camp, where miraculously an icon began to weep. Excited, the children at the camp ran to tell the priest of this miracle, and they asked “Father what could this miracle mean?” “He answered, we don’t know what it means, we’ll see what fruit it bears.” In the Gospel of Matthew we read, “Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, ‘Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.’” They were saying to Christ, we want to see a miracle. Perhaps we’ve all had this desire; we have all said this prayer. “God give me, or show me, a sign.” Yet, our Christian faith is not based on seeing miracles; we are not called to seek out events or signs taking place. Rather, as the priest said, if and when miracles happen, they should be looked at with a discernment: “what fruit it bears.”

In 1980 December, a man named Wally Nelson discovered the body of a 19-year-old girl named Jean Hilliard, frozen on his doorstep; She had apparently sat for six full hours outdoors in -22 F Minnesota temperatures. Immediately she was brought to the hospital, where, to everyone’s amazement she was revived, with only a few blistered toes. A miracle; a medical marvel, right? Well what happened after this miracle? Jean became a celebrity overnight. She toured churches, appeared on talk shows telling her story: The miracle girl from Lengby, Minnesota. Yet, over the years, attention died down; her miracle was not that miraculous anymore. People became bored and began searching for the “next miracle.” Almost everyone she knew, medical professionals and friends told her she was saved by a miracle yet, it all stopped for some reason. Eventually she got married, had kids, and moved to central Minnesota where she works at Walmart – and everyone else moved on.

Was it a miracle? Undoubtedly! Yet, what fruit did it bear, my dears? Did it bring her closer to God? Did others renew their faith by seeing or hearing about this miracle? Or was it just the new sensation for a time until the appetite of people eventually wore off and interest in the miracle was lost? My dears, this is why Christ rebukes the Pharisees and says they will not get another sign apart from Jonah, “But He answered and said to them, ‘An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.’” (V.39) Why are they an evil and adulterous generation? All they wanted was to see a miracle. Well let us examine what does an adulterous person do my dears? They cheat and lie. They are never satisfied with their spouse. They seek pleasure and a false euphoric feeling through the indulgence, betrayal and devaluing who they are married to by seeking “fulfillment” elsewhere. The Pharisees and Scribes, much like society today, are like this. We ignore God; we are unsatisfied and are seeking a false pleasure. We only listen to God or follow Him when He fits our needs, fulfills our desires. At the cost of their own souls, the Pharisees ignored all the miracles, healings, feedings and signs Christ has already done – those which they, by the way, said was by the devil – and they wanted something new or else they would move on.

Christ isn’t saying praying for, desiring, witnessing or experiencing miracles is wrong. Our God is a God of miracles. We read in Psalm 77 “You are the God who does wonders;” Our God heals the blind, gives voice to the mute, cleanses the leper and gives life to the dead. Christ Jesus tells us to pray, to ask, to seek and we will find, we will be quenched, we fill be fed. Yet, what Christ is rebuking is that evil spirit by which we are seeking signs because if all we want is a “miracle to prove to us God exists”, through that mentality we make God into a stage act, a performance. As long as we are entertained and get what we want, we will remain interested. Or else, like an adulterous person, we will move on to the next “miracle” and performance. Elsewhere Christ again tells them “‘Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled.’” (Jn. 6:26) You’ve seen the signs but you believe me not because of the miracle but because of the momentary material want. Like the Pharisees, we too have already seen, read and heard of all the ways God works in our lives, blesses us – yet, do we ignore them? Perhaps we forget? 

Yes, miracles and seeing God work in our lives is wonderful and can help strengthen our faith but we believe regardless of those miracles. It’s amazing how some of the most faithful people are those who have seen the least miracles, who have suffered and carried the heaviest of crosses. Why? Miracles do not give us faith – rather, faith gives us wisdom to see and understand miracles. My dears, if we are so blessed to witness a miracle, whether it is a weeping icon, a healing from some sickness, an overcoming of pain and suffering – we need to ask ourselves, what fruit does it bear? Is the miracle we see and experience a reminder of how much God loves us; will it serve as an opportunity for us to continue to pray and read scriptures; will this miracle help us remain faithful so that our life will reflect the joy of Christ’s life everywhere we go? Or will we forget in a few weeks? Look for something more interesting? Or because of skepticism, ignore it completely.

My dears, we don’t come to God, pray, repent of our sinfulness, or read the Bible to make us feel good, fill our stomach’s, be entertained, get a miracle from or some other material gain. We come to God, because we believe that Christ Jesus, God the Son came to us, lived and suffered like us, died for us and through His resurrection calls us to live through Him. That is why St. Paul in Romans writes, “if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.” (Rom. 8:11) Why do we pray? Why and what signs are we looking for? What fruit will it bear? Are we seeking our faith to be validated or are we looking for an opportunity to grow in our faith?

Yes, we are human and we may be forgetful sometimes. Which is why God every day invites us back to Him; through the Holy Scriptures, the Holy Church and through other people reveals Himself to us. For this reason, my dears, let us pray for wisdom and discernment; let us ask God to open our eyes and ears to hear Him and strengthen our faith today not only through miraculous signs but through love, and hope. And perhaps, through the grace of the Holy Spirit, our lives will be a reflection, a testimony of faith for others to see and witness a miracle; perhaps we are a miracle for others to come to God by yet, we don’t recognize it. Because assuredly my dears, as Christ tell us, there is no greater miracle, no greater joy and celebration on Heaven or on Earth then when one person repents and comes to God. That is a miracle that bears blessed and divine fruit – truly an act of God’s presence. May the grace and love of the Holy Spirit, guide and protect us in this life so that we will come to God, Amen!