Pascal's Pensées
one party can do miracles, not the others. For it is clear of the one
party, that they are opposed to the truth, but not of the others; and
thus miracles are clearer.
836
That we must love one God only is a thing so evident, that it does not
require miracles to prove it.
837
Jesus Christ performed miracles, then the apostles, and the first saints
in great number; because the prophecies not being yet accomplished, but
in the process of being accomplished by them, the miracles alone bore
witness to them. It was foretold that the Messiah should convert the
nations. How could this prophecy be fulfilled without the conversion of
the nations? And how could the nations be converted to the Messiah, if
they did not see this final effect of the prophecies which prove Him?
Therefore, till He had died, risen again, and converted the nations, all
was not accomplished; and so miracles were needed during all this time.
Now they are no longer needed against the Jews; for the accomplished
prophecies constitute a lasting miracle.
838
"Though ye believe not Me, believe at least the works."[331] He refers
them, as it were, to the strongest proof.
It had been told to the Jews, as well as to Christians, that they should
not always believe the prophets; but yet the Pharisees and Scribes are
greatly concerned about His miracles, and try to show that they are
false, or wrought by the devil. For they must needs be convinced, if
they acknowledge that they are of God.
At the present day we are not troubled to make this distinction. Still
it is very easy to do: those who deny neither God nor Jesus Christ do no
miracles which are not certain. _Nemo facit virtutem in nomine meo, et
cito possit de me male loqui._[332]
But we have not to draw this distinction. Here is a sacred relic.[333]
Here is a thorn from the crown of the Saviour of the world, over whom
the prince of this world has no power, which works miracles by the
peculiar power of the blood shed for us. Now God Himself chooses this
house in order to display conspiciously therein His power.
These are not men who do miracles by an unknown and doubtful virtue,
which makes a decision difficult for us. It is God Himself. It is the
instrument of the Passion of His only Son, who, being in many places,
chooses this, and makes men come from all quarters there to receive
these miraculous alleviations in their weaknesses.
839
The Church has three kinds of enemies: the Jews, who have never been of
her body; the heretics, who have withdrawn from it; and the evil
Christians, who rend her from within.
These three kinds of different adversaries usually attack her in
different ways. But here they attack her in one and the same way. As
they are all without miracles, and as the Church has always had miracles
against them, they have all had the same interest in evading them; and
they all make use of this excuse, that doctrine must not be judged by
miracles, but miracles by doctrine. There were two parties among those
who heard Jesus Christ: those who followed His teaching on account of
His miracles; others who said.... There were two parties in the time of
Calvin.... There are now the Jesuits, etc.
840
Miracles furnish the test in matters of doubt, between Jews and
heathens, Jews and Christians, Catholics and heretics, the slandered and
slanderers, between the two crosses.
But miracles would be useless to heretics; for the Church, authorised by
miracles which have already obtained belief, tells us that they have not
the true faith. There is no doubt that they are not in it, since the
first miracles of the Church exclude belief of theirs. Thus there is
miracle against miracle, both the first and greatest being on the side
of the Church.
These nuns,[334] astonished at what is said, that they are in the way of
perdition; that their confessors are leading them to Geneva; that they
suggest to them that Jesus Christ is not in the Eucharist, nor on the
right hand of the Father; know that all this is false, and therefore
offer themselves to God in this state. _Vide si via iniquitatis in me
est._[335] What happens thereupon? This place, which is said to be the
temple of the devil, God makes His own temple. It is said that the
children must be taken away from it. God heals them there. It is said
that it is the arsenal of hell. God makes of it the sanctuary of His
grace. Lastly, they are threatened with all the fury and vengeance of
heaven; and God overwhelms them with favours. A man would need to have
lost his senses to conclude from this that they are therefore in the way
of perdition.
(We have without doubt the same signs as Saint Athanasius.)
841
_Si tu es Christus, dic nobis.[336]
Opera quæ ego facio in nomine patris mei, hæc testimonium perhibent de
me. Sed vos non creditis quia non estis ex ovibus meis. Oves meoe vocem
meam audiunt._[337]
John vi, 30. _Quod ergo tu facis signum ut videamus et credamus
tibi?--Non dicunt: Quam doctrinam prædicas?
Nemo potest facere signa quæ tu facis nisi Deus._[338]
2 Macc. xiv, 15. _Deus qui signis evidentibus suam portionem protegit.
Volumus signum videre de coelo, tentantes eum._ Luke xi, 16.
_Generatio prava signum quærit; et non dabitur.[339]
Et ingemiscens ait: Quid generatio ista signum quærit?_ (Mark viii, 12.)
They asked a sign with an evil intention.
_Et non poterat facere._[340] And yet he promises them the sign of
Jonah, the great and wonderful miracle of his resurrection.
_Nisi videritis, non creditis._[341] He does not blame them for not
believing unless there are miracles, but for not believing unless they
are themselves spectators of them.
Antichrist _in signis mendacibus_, says Saint Paul, 2 Thess. ii.
_Secundum operationem Satanæ, in seductione iis qui pereunt eo quod
charitatem veritatis non receperunt ut salvi fierent, ideo mittet illis
Deus optationes erroris ut credant mendacio._
As in the passage of Moses: _Tentat enim vos Deus, utrum diligatis
eum.[342]
Ecce prædixi vobis: vos ergo videte._[343]
842
Here is not the country of truth. She wanders unknown amongst men. God
has covered her with a veil, which leaves her unrecognised by those who
do not hear her voice. Room is opened for blasphemy, even against the
truths that are at least very likely. If the truths of the Gospel are
published, the contrary is published too, and the questions are
obscured, so that the people cannot distinguish. And they ask, "What
have you to make you believed rather than others? What sign do you give?
You have only words, and so have we. If you had miracles, good and
well." That doctrine ought to be supported by miracles is a truth, which
they misuse in order to revile doctrine. And if miracles happen, it is
said that miracles are not enough without doctrine; and this is another
truth, which they misuse in order to revile miracles.
Jesus Christ cured the man born blind, and performed a number of
miracles on the Sabbath day. In this way He blinded the Pharisees, who
said that miracles must be judged by doctrine.
"We have Moses: but, as for this fellow, we know not from whence he
is."[344] It is wonderful that you know not whence He is, and yet He
does such miracles.
Jesus Christ spoke neither against God, nor against Moses.
Antichrist and the false prophets, foretold by both Testaments, will
speak openly against God and against Jesus Christ. Who is not hidden ...
God would not allow him, who would be a secret enemy, to do miracles
openly.
In a public dispute where the two parties profess to be for God, for
Jesus Christ, for the Church, miracles have never been on the side of
the false Christians, and the other side has never been without a
miracle.
"He hath a devil." John x, 21. And others said, "Can a devil open the
eyes of the blind?"
The proofs which Jesus Christ and the apostles draw from Scripture are
not conclusive; for they say only that Moses foretold that a prophet
should come. But they do not thereby prove that this is He; and that is
the whole question. These passages therefore serve only to show that
they are not contrary to Scripture, and that there appears no
inconsistency, but not that there is agreement. Now this is enough,
namely, exclusion of inconsistency, along with miracles.
There is a mutual duty between God and men. We must pardon Him this
saying: Quid debui?[345] "Accuse me," said God in Isaiah.
"God must fulfil His promises," etc.
Men owe it to God to accept the religion which He sends. God owes it to
men not to lead them into error. Now, they would be led into error, if
the workers of miracles announced a doctrine which should not appear
evidently false to the light of common sense, and if a greater worker of
miracles had not already warned men not to believe them.
Thus, if there were divisions in the Church, and the Arians, for
example, who declared themselves founded on Scripture just as the
Catholics, had done miracles, and not the Catholics, men should have
been led into error.
For, as a man, who announces to us the secrets of God, is not worthy to
be believed on his private authority, and that is why the ungodly doubt
him; so when a man, as a token of the communion which he has with God,
raises the dead, foretells the future, removes the seas, heals the sick,
there is none so wicked as not to bow to him, and the incredulity of
Pharaoh and the Pharisees is the effect of a supernatural obduracy.
When, therefore, we see miracles and a doctrine not suspicious, both on
one side, there is no difficulty. But when we see miracles and
suspicious doctrine on the same side, we must then see which is the
clearest. Jesus Christ was suspected.
Bar-jesus blinded.[346] The power of God surpasses that of His enemies.
The Jewish exorcists[347] beaten by the devils, saying, "Jesus I know,
and Paul I know; but who are ye?"
Miracles are for doctrine, and not doctrine for miracles.
If the miracles are true, shall we be able to persuade men of all
doctrine? No; for this will not come to pass. _Si angelus_[348]....
Rule: we must judge of doctrine by miracles; we must judge of miracles
by doctrine. All this is true, but contains no contradiction.
For we must distinguish the times.
How glad you are to know the general rules, thinking thereby to set up
dissension, and render all useless! We shall prevent you, my father;
truth is one and constant.
It is impossible, from the duty of God to men, that a man, hiding his
evil teaching, and only showing the good, saying that he conforms to God
and the Church, should do miracles so as to instil insensibly a false
and subtle doctrine. This cannot happen.
And still less, that God, who knows the heart, should perform miracles
in favour of such a one.
843
The three marks of religion: perpetuity, a good life, miracles. They
destroy perpetuity by their doctrine of probability; a good life by
their morals; miracles by destroying either their truth or the
conclusions to be drawn from them.
If we believe them, the Church will have nothing to do with perpetuity,
holiness, and miracles. The heretics deny them, or deny the conclusions
to be drawn from them; they do the same. But one would need to have no
sincerity in order to deny them, or again to lose one's senses in order
to deny the conclusions to be drawn from them.
Nobody has ever suffered martyrdom for the miracles which he says he has
seen; for the folly of men goes perhaps to the length of martyrdom, for
those which the Turks believe by tradition, but not for those which they
have seen.
844
The heretics have always attacked these three marks, which they have
not.
845
_First objection_: "An angel from heaven.[349] We must not judge of