Chapter 8.—Of Miracles Which Were
Wrought that the World Might Believe in Christ, and Which Have Not
Ceased Since the World Believed.
Why, they say, are those miracles, which you affirm were wrought formerly, wrought no longer? I might, indeed, reply that miracles were necessary before the world believed, in order that it might believe. And whoever now-a-days demands to see prodigies that he may believe, is himself a great prodigy, because he does not believe, though the whole world does. But they make these objections for the sole purpose of insinuating that even those former miracles were never wrought. How, then, is it that everywhere Christ is celebrated with such firm belief in His resurrection and ascension? How is it that in enlightened times, in which every impossibility is rejected, the world has, without any miracles, believed things marvellously incredible? Or will they say that these things were credible, and therefore were credited? Why then do they themselves not believe? Our argument, therefore, is a summary one—either incredible things which were not witnessed have caused the world to believe other incredible things which both occurred and were witnessed, or this matter was so credible that it needed no miracles in proof of it, and therefore convicts these unbelievers of unpardonable scepticism. This I might say for the sake of refuting these most frivolous objectors. But we cannot deny that many miracles were wrought to confirm that one grand and health-giving miracle of Christ’s ascension to heaven with the flesh in which He rose. For these most trustworthy books of ours contain in one narrative both the miracles that were wrought and the creed which they were wrought to confirm. The miracles were published that they might produce faith, and the faith which they produced brought them into
greater prominence. For they
are read in congregations that they may be believed, and yet they
would not be so read unless they were believed. For even now
miracles are wrought in the name of Christ, whether by His
sacraments or by the prayers or relics of His saints; but they are
not so brilliant and conspicuous as to cause them to be published
with such glory as accompanied the former miracles. For the canon
of the sacred writings, which behoved to be closed, causes
those to be everywhere recited, and to sink into the memory of all
the congregations; but these modern miracles are scarcely known
even to the whole population in the midst of which they are
wrought, and at the 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 wrought at
Milan when I was there, and by which a blind man was restored to
sight, could come to the knowledge of many; for not only is the
city a large one, but also the emperor was there at the time, and
the occurrence was witnessed by an immense concourse of people that
had gathered to the bodies of the martyrs Protasius and Gervasius, which had long lain concealed and unknown, but were now made known to the bishop Ambrose in a dream, and discovered by him. By virtue of these remains the darkness of that blind man was scattered, and he saw the light of day.