DAVID HUME’S On Miracles (Section X ofTheEnquiry)http://18th.eserver.org/hume-enquiry.html
On Hume’s vieweven ifa miracle happens (e.g. a piece of lead floats around our head or we see Jesus crucified and dead and then walking around three days later) it is neverrationalto believe it happened. In other wordswe should not believe that a 12 lbs. piece of lead floated around our head and that Jesus actually rose from the dead because it is contrary to our experience of the world–lead doesn’t float around our heads and people do not rise from the dead.

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(CHOOSE: 1a or 1b)
1a: Now some philosophers think that this epistemic view is too strong and that it might impede scientific progress. What do you think? From what you know of wild things in science (now and in the last 200 years) would scientists have made less progress if they followed Hume’s conservative epistemic view? Give specific examples to illustrate your view.
1b:PowerPointLecture:Give examples of God’s possible action in your life through both primary causation and secondary causation (see my story fromChemsford England). And do you think we should say God’s action through secondary causation (likeRidleyScott’s view of the parting of the Red Sea) is amiracle?
HUME’S PART 2: BUT-IN-FACTthe testimony for miracles is (usually) horrible for four reasons:
(2) Explain one of the first threebut-in-factarguments that Hume gives and defend his view with an example in the last 100 years(miracle claims supernatural claims UFOsBigFoot Nessie Bat Boy etc.).
(3)William Lane Craig’sonlinearticle The Resurrection of Jesushttp://www.reasonablefaith.org/the-resurrection-of-jesus What is the best piece of evidence in defense of the view thatJesus was raised from the dead?
(4) After reading the article or watching video by William Lane Craig explain some of the facts around the resurrection of Jesus(use short quotes and give us page numbers)and tell us which explanation is most reliable:Jesus was raised from the dead by God; Jesus’ unknown twin brother stole the body and destroyed it and impersonated Jesus; the disciples lied and made it up; the disciples saw appearances of Jesus and we just don’t know how to explain it – they saw Jesus but it can’t be true that Jesus rose from the dead; Etc.
(5) Rowe chapter pp. 145-146. Answerone of the Topics for Review questions and one of the Topics for Further Study questions. Type out the whole questions and cite the text with page numbers.
(6) Critical Comment and Question from the Rowe chapter. E.g. Examine atheist C.D.Broad’sargument from indirect evidence being stronger than the disciples’ testimony the 17th century philosophers’ argument that even mentally disabled people can know if a man is dead and if he is alive etc.
Choose one (or more) to answer:
A. Find a good miracle video onYouTubeand evaluate it. Or evaluate this one of two cases: (1) a woman escaping through a solid window in a river; and )2) an angel talking to the police to find a baby in a car.https://youtu.be/X4JLHnRX1WE
B. Critique the Zeitgeist film’s argument that if the concept of a dying and rising god was present inEgytianlore and other religions then it shows that the Christian case is false a priori.C.S. Lewis thought that if ithadn’tbeen in other religions we would not have recognized it; and that the difference in the case of Jesus is that itactually happenedthis time. So the argument is null and void. Do you agree with Lewis or Zeitgeist? Explain.
(C) Tell us a spring tradition (e.g. Easter March Madness spring break etc.) in your family that you are fond of.