“It is not the business of philosophers to perform miracles.”Voltaire · Dicționar filozofic · 1764 · Question à examiner
When a doctrine promises miracles, it proves not its truth but its escape from scrutiny.
Voltaire separates two roles the public often confuses: the philosopher and the miracle-worker. The philosopher's task is to think, argue, and clarify, and the fruit of that work is modest, slow, and sometimes unimpressive. Miracles belong to another register, that of faith or deception. When someone claims a doctrine performs wonders, the sign is not the doctrine's greatness but its flight from verification. A philosopher promising magical cures has already stopped philosophizing.
Why it matters It helps filter gurus and doctrines that sell their effectiveness through spectacle rather than argument.