Miracles in the Church Age: Why They Seem Less Frequent
The perceived infrequency of miracles in the contemporary Church Age, compared to biblical accounts, is a topic addressed by various theological traditions, often leading to different explanations. One common perspective is that miracles served a specific purpose in establishing Christianity, and once that purpose was fulfilled, their widespread occurrence diminished [6].
Augustine of Hippo, for instance, acknowledged that while miracles occurred in his time, they were not as widely known or as frequently reported as those in the apostolic era. He noted that many contemporary miracles were confined to specific locations and known only to a few, making it difficult for them to gain widespread credence [2]. Augustine also distinguished between miracles that occurred to establish belief in Christ and those that continued afterward, suggesting a shift in their nature and visibility [2]. He further explained that while divine power continually administers creation, certain events become miraculous when they occur outside the usual course of nature, such as rain after a long drought at Elijah's prayer, which would otherwise be a natural phenomenon [4].
Charles Hodge, one theologian, observed a contrast between the miracles described in Scripture and those reported in later ecclesiastical history [1]. He noted that even in the seventeenth century, belief in phenomena like ghosts, witches, and necromancy was widespread among both Protestants and Catholics [5]. Hodge also critiqued the Roman Catholic tradition for propagating reports of miracles, which he suggested were sometimes known to be false and used for deceitful purposes [5].
Adam Clarke, a Methodist commentator, argued that miracles were primarily for the establishment of Christian doctrines where they were first preached. He suggested that once these doctrines are believed, miracles become unnecessary. For example, he noted that Jesus did not perform miracles among the Samaritans who already believed his message, indicating that belief itself can render miracles superfluous [6].
The Apostle Paul, in 2 Corinthians 12:12, refers to the "signs, wonders, and mighty works" that characterized his apostleship, implying that these were authenticating marks of his ministry [3]. The Jamieson, Fausset & Brown commentary suggests that these signs were not necessarily transmitted to subsequent generations, implying a unique role for apostolic miracles [3].
Thomas Aquinas, representing scholastic Catholic thought, discussed miraculous apparitions within the Eucharist, noting that such events could be subjective experiences of the beholders rather than objective changes in the sacrament itself. He described instances where individuals might perceive flesh, blood, or a child, but these were often attributed to the affected eyes of the observer rather than a transformation of the sacramental elements [8]. This suggests a nuanced view of what constitutes a miracle and how it is perceived.
John Calvin, another prominent Reformed theologian, emphasized the spiritual efficacy of Christ's work, particularly his death and resurrection, which he described as providing spiritual life through faith. He highlighted that Christ's body, given for salvation, becomes "bread" for the soul when partaken by faith [7]. While not directly addressing the frequency of miracles, Calvin's focus on the spiritual and internal work of Christ through faith can be seen as prioritizing a different kind of divine activity than overt physical miracles.
The various perspectives suggest that the perceived decrease in miracles is not necessarily a denial of God's power, but rather an understanding of how divine intervention manifests across different eras and for different purposes.
Sources
- CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 3, section 51: candid enough to admit the contrast between the Scriptural and what he calls ecclesiastical miracles. Of the former, he says, 418 418 Two Essays on Scripture Miracles and on Ecclesiastical. By John Henry Newman, formerly Fellow of Oriel College, Oxford, 2d edit. London, 1870, p. 116. These Essays, it should be stated, were first published before Dr. Newman entered the Church of Rome. The former was written in 1825-26, and the latter in 1842-43. He was reconciled to Rome in 1845. In the second edition of the united essays published in 1870”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 2: Augustine — City of God, Christian Doctrine — CHAP. 8.--OF MIRACLES WHICH WERE WROUGHT THAT THE WORLD MIGHT BELIEVE IN CHRIST, AND WHICH HAVE NOT CEASED SINCE THE WORLD BELIEVED. (part 2): best are confined to one spot. For frequently they are known only to a very few persons, while all the rest are ignorant of them, especially if the state is a large one; and when they are reported to other persons in other localities, there is no sufficient authority to give them prompt and unwavering credence, although they are reported to the faithful by the faithful. The miracle which was wro”
- 2 Corinthians (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on 2 Corinthians 12:12: Truly, &c.--There is understood some such clause as this, "And yet I have not been commended by you." in all patience, in signs, &c.--The oldest manuscripts omit "in." "Patience" is not one of the "signs," but the element IN which they were wrought: endurance of opposition which did not cause me to leave off working [ALFORD]. Translate, "IN . . . patience, BY signs," &c. His mode of expression is modest, putting himself, the worker, in the background, "were wrought," not "I wrought." As the signs have not been transmitted to us, neither has t”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 3: Augustine — On the Holy Trinity — CHAP. 5.--WHY MIRACLES ARE NOT USUAL: WORKS. 11. For since the divine power administers the whole spiritual and corporeal creature, the waters of the sea are summoned and poured out upon the face of the earth on certain days of every year. But when this was done at the prayer of the holy Elijah; because so continued and long a course of fair weather had gone before, that men were famished; and because at that very hour, in which the servant of God prayed, the air itself had not, by any moist aspect, put forth signs of the coming rain; the divine p”
- CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 3, section 51: the affairs of men, was for ages universal. Even so late as the seventeenth century Protestants as well as Catholics, of all ranks, believed in ghosts, witches, necromancy, and demonocracy. Cotton Mather’s “Magnalia” is a match for the Legends of the Saints. 5. It is not that Romanists believed in the frequent occurrence of miracles, but that they propagated reports of miracles, knowing them to be false; that this was done for the purposes of deceit; that this is persisted in to the present day; and that the 456 honour, truth, integrity, ”
- John (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on John 4:40: He abode there two days - We are not told that he wrought any miracles among them; this does not appear to have been necessary: they were a simple-hearted, teachable people, and they credited him on the evidence of his own eternal truth. Why are not miracles wrought now? Miracles were only for the establishment of the doctrines of Christianity, where they were first preached; we profess to believe these doctrines; therefore, to us, miracles would be useless. Where the doctrine is credited, no miracle is necessary: the Samaritans believed, and no miracle was wrought am”
- CCEL (Reformed) “John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, section 99: the efficacy and fruit of his nativity, death, and resurrection, eternal. All this Christ has elegantly expressed in these words, “The bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world” ( John 6:51 ); doubtless intimating, that his body will be as bread in regard to the spiritual life of the soul, because it was to be delivered to death for our salvation, and that he extends it to us for food when he makes us partakers of it by faith. Wherefore he once gave himself that he might become bread, when he g”
- theology (Catholic (Scholastic)) “Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Third Part (Tertia Pars), Of the Way in Which Christ Is in This Sacrament, Art. 8: Article: Whether Christ's body is truly there when flesh or a child appears miraculously in this sacrament? I answer that, Such apparition comes about in two ways, when occasionally in this sacrament flesh, or blood, or a child, is seen. Sometimes it happens on the part of the beholders, whose eyes are so affected as if they outwardly saw flesh, or blood, or a child, while no change takes place in the sacrament. And this seems to happen when to one person it is seen under the species o”