OPINION:
Are miracles real — and do they still happen today? I’ve spent the past year and a half exploring these fascinating questions as I’ve traveled the nation investigating claims of miraculous medical healings for the new documentary, “Investigating the Supernatural: Miracles.”
Along the journey, a fascinating reality quickly became blatantly clear: Most Americans wholeheartedly believe in miracles. A Pew Research Center poll from 2010 found that 80% of adults hold such a view, with more recent data indicating a similar trend.
“Though often the subject of much debate — both theologically and scientifically — the majority of American adults (66%) believe people can be physically healed supernaturally by God,” Barna noted in a 2016 research analysis. “This majority is made up equally between those who either strongly (33%) or somewhat (33%) agree that it’s possible to be physically healed supernaturally by God.”
Other surveys have come to similar conclusions, showcasing a profound openness to the existence of radical and shocking healings in the modern era.
But while there’s clearly a deep belief in such things — and no shortage of supernatural claims — my task in hosting this film demanded something much deeper than taking these inklings at face value.
“Investigating the Supernatural: Miracles” required our team at the Christian Broadcasting Network to weed through the slew of anecdotal examples, find the most compelling cases and dive deep into the evidence to assess what was truly unfolding.
It’s not uncommon that we hear the word “miracle” being tossed around, especially when people overcome something difficult, when an illness is beaten — or when an inexplicable event that could have ended in catastrophe somehow concludes in a favorable manner.
Just last summer, the nation witnessed the attempted assassination of then-candidate Donald Trump during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. A bullet, which grazed Mr. Trump’s ear, could have killed him if his head were turned even slightly from its position.
Dr. Marc Siegel told Fox News the entire ordeal was “miraculous” as it’s rare someone walks away from such a scenario with the bullet only grazing their ear.
“I’ve been talking to emergency room doctors, vascular surgeons and trauma surgeons all over the country this morning, and nobody can remember a case like this,” he told the outlet, noting the injury was “next to the part of the brain that is absolutely uniformly deadly, over 95% deadly, if he’d been hit in the brain there.”
Of course, not everyone embraced the notion that Mr. Trump’s survival was miraculous, with some simply seeing it as a chance survival that was bizarre but still explainable. Regardless of where one stands on Mr. Trump’s ordeal, definitively documenting a miracle does require more vetting than relying on a simple hunch or feeling.
And that’s exactly the journey we embarked on in our film, highlighting powerful, real-life claims of divine intervention as told by those who were healed, those who prayed for healing, through dramatic reenactments, and the exploration of groundbreaking scientific analysis.
As a Christian, I’ve always had a skeptical approach to these claims. Though I’ve believed healings were possible, I’ve always been relatively uncompelled without evidence and backing that help illuminate details.
But I won’t lie: After completing “Investigating the Supernatural: Miracles,” I’ve been left in a bit of awe, as the evidence of what I saw, I believe, would challenge even the staunchest skeptics. Plainly stated: there are cases that have absolutely no natural explanation.
There’s the case of Dr. Chauncey Crandall, a cardiologist and internist who reports incredible healings among his patients — and who claims to have seen a man come back to life after being clinically dead for 40 minutes. It might seem unbelievable, but it’s heavily documented.
Then there’s Bryan Lapooh, a former New Jersey police officer who was paralyzed for a decade after a work accident. But after attending a prayer event, Mr. Lapooh received a healing that allowed him to very literally walk out of the building on his own volition.
And the stories don’t end there. These aren’t mere anecdotal tales without backing. These accounts and others in “Investigating the Supernatural: Miracles” are medically verified, iron-clad and eye-popping, to say the least.
These stories force us to ask some difficult questions about the supernatural and a Higher Power. Beyond that, these healings prompt some additional questions that become much harder to answer. If miracles are real, why doesn’t everyone receive them?
And what dictates, if anything, who receives a miracle — and who doesn’t?
We were forced to grapple with these queries as we traveled the nation to analyze and examine these claims. Ultimately, the film transformed my faith and opened my eyes in ways I never expected.
I believe it will do the same for viewers who come with an open heart and open eyes. “Investigating the Supernatural: Miracles” is streaming on the Christian Broadcast Network.
• Billy Hallowell is a digital TV host and interviewer for Faithwire and CBN News and the co-host of CBN’s “Quick Start Podcast.” Mr. Hallowell is the author of four books.
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