"Ignorance is the soil in which belief in miracles grows"

Ignorance is a state where knowledge is absent, where facts remain undiscovered or unacknowledged. When people lack understanding of the world, natural phenomena, or the principles governing it, their minds become more receptive to accepting extraordinary claims without critical examination. Belief in miracles, by definition, relies on the suspension or violation of natural laws. In the absence of scientific literacy or skepticism, even the most improbable events can be accepted as the interventions of supernatural forces.

Historically, unexplained occurrences—such as lightning, eclipses, illness, or recovery—were often attributed to divine or other mystical forces because scientific explanations were not available or not widely understood. People filled the gaps in their understanding with stories that explained these mysteries through the lens of religion or superstition. Miracles therefore become credible, not because evidence supports them, but because those who believe are unaware of alternative explanations or lack the tools to critically evaluate what they observe.

Education, inquiry, and the scientific method serve as antidotes to such credulity. As societies advance in knowledge, the realm of what is considered miraculous steadily contracts. Events once deemed impossible are routinely explained through reason and evidence. Where ignorance prevailed, acceptance of miracles flourished; when enlightenment spreads, so too does skepticism and the willingness to question apparent wonders.

Belief in miracles persists most fervently where information is scarce, where questioning is discouraged, or where tradition is allowed to overpower curiosity. Knowledge, therefore, acts as a fertilizer not for faith in miracles, but for understanding the universe as it operates within natural laws. Clinging to ignorance allows miracles to thrive; cultivating knowledge diminishes their domain by demystifying the world and replacing wonder with comprehension. In this way, belief in the supernatural is often symptomatic of a deeper lack—not of faith, but of familiarity with reality as explained by reason.