Photo by Bebeto Matthews/AP
Note: I had two drafts of this post and inadvertently published the wrong one which remained on my blog for some minutes; that error has been corrected.
A wonderful and awesome event occurred yesterday in the waters of a river in New York and it's being called by many the "miracle on the Hudson."
Was it? Was it a miracle?
I think not.
A miracle is an event that appears inexplicable by the laws of nature and so is held to be supernatural in origin or an act of God.
Nothing of yesterday's good news in the Hudson River remains unexplained by the laws of nature. Nothing of the wonderful event that occurred requires a supernatural origin to make sense of it. Nothing of the amazing reality that all passengers and crew of the plane survived was impossible absent an act of God.
A well-trained, experienced cockpit and cabin crew, a cooperative complement of passengers, alert ferry crews on the river and subsequently other rescue personnel all worked together to achieve the remarkable feat of landing a malfunctioning jet in the Hudson and successfully escorting all on board to safety - all by the grace of God.
I say, "all by the grace of God" because I believe every good gift finds its source in the goodness of God. But nothing in the story of U.S. Airways Flight 1549 gives evidence of otherwise unexplained divine intervention.
I don't write this to minimize a wonderful story nor to downplay the expertise and excellent work of so many. Those who did their jobs so remarkably well are more than deserving of the praise they're receiving. Indeed, let's lift high for all to see what human beings are capable of when they do their jobs well and work selflessly together. But it's better to save a word like "miracle" for those situations when such a term accurately applies. Too generous an application of such vocabulary diminishes divine intervention when and if it should occur.
Still, let us praise God from whom all blessings flow...
-ConcordPastor
Well despite what you think,I do actually believe the Miracle of the Hudson was in fact a Miracle. A Miracle does not always have to be supernatural. Miracles happen around us everyday; like finding an expensive check you lost, or being proven innocent in a crime to did not committ. I believe the Miracle of the Hudson was a Miracle because the plane did not fall apart upon impact and everyone survived.
ReplyDeletethank you... thank you... your words are so full (overflowing) with wisdom and truth and... insight and understanding... and, just reality.
ReplyDeleteI think 40 years experience flying and trianing on military and cilivial aircraft as well as some luck with the incident timing and location as well as the water conditions all made for one well executed water ditch.
ReplyDeletewell done!
Two members of my family are flight attendants. Once a year they must attend a re qualification exam, a series of tests that include all safety issues. If they fail, even one test, they cannot fly until the next year when the "requal" comes up again. It's a stressful day for them and I hear the complaints when the time draws near. After the the news of this NY incident I emailed them saying "You guys rock!!" and asked "Doesn't this make the stress of the re qualification worthwhile?" One emailed me back..."It was a miracle!!!"
ReplyDeleteI understand your definition of a miracle and agree. Yet,I believe that there could have been divine intervention. Some of the passengers being interviewed spoke about the prayers being said aloud together. I like to believe that God intervened.
Anne
Let's face it, concordpastor, you are a "miracle downer". :-)
ReplyDeleteThank you for those wise words. I, too, think we should salute the expertise and the cool heads that led to this happy outcome. But, I don't want to dilute the concept of a miracle by attributing it to this event. I wonder if this outpouring means that we're not accustomed to folks doing their jobs well? We certainly have many examples of that these days.
ReplyDeleteI believe this is a miracle because when you think about it, all that was against them, the Hudson River, the frigid temperatures, possible uncontrolled chaos, it just worked out perfectly and who is to judge whether it was God who sent his angels or himself that intervened. The universe is infinite and this is just another experience for us to learn to grow and love one another. God bless the Pilot and everyone who was on that plane. I prayed that morning even before it happened, etc. We ca
ReplyDelete“Pastor of little faith?” If he cannot see with his own eyes the direct hand of god, it did not happen. What a small box you keep your God in. Now that science can explain the plagues of Egypt, we now know it was not God. The unemployment line for all people of the cloth starts behind the Concord Pastor. God is been declared not there.
ReplyDeleteSix people died in the crash of a small plane in West Virginia after it ran out of fuel during a snowstorm. How come God didn't save them? Or was he busy helping someone find a lost check?
ReplyDeleteGiven that my take on the Hudson story is that this was not an act of divine intervention, I'm not sure how to resond to Lugosi's question. Nor do I understand the reference to a lost check.
ReplyDelete