---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In fact, I think it was the philosopher…"
description: "\"In fact, I think it was the philosopher Hume who argued that it's far more likely that a miracle is a new physical phenomenon that we have yet to disco..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d40/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_facts_in-fact-i-think-it-was-the-philosopher-h_2249928.png"
---

#  In fact, I think it was the philosopher Hume who argued…

![“In fact, I think it was the philosopher Hume who argued that it's far more likely that a miracle is a new physical phenomenon that we have yet to discover and have now discovered in that moment than it is a spiritual force coming down from God making something happen in front of you.” quote by Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d40/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_facts_in-fact-i-think-it-was-the-philosopher-h_2249928.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d40/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_facts_in-fact-i-think-it-was-the-philosopher-h_2249928.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d40/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_facts_in-fact-i-think-it-was-the-philosopher-h_2249928.png)

> “In fact, I think it was the philosopher Hume who argued that it's far more likely that a miracle is a new physical phenomenon that we have yet to discover and have now discovered in that moment than it is a spiritual force coming down from God making something happen in front of you.”

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Miracles are better explained as unknown natural phenomena rather than supernatural interventions.

**In simple terms:** Unexplained events are likely natural, not divine.

Key Takeaway

Seek scientific explanations first.

Themes

science skepticism philosophy miracles

Mood

curious inquisitive

Type

philosophical scientific

When to use this quote

- medical breakthroughs
- technological innovation
- unexplained phenomena
- personal experiences

Key Concepts

natural philosophy epistemology probability

Questions to Reflect On

- How do we differentiate unknown science from true miracles?
- What role does belief play in interpreting unexplained events?

A Different Perspective

Scientific evidence may be lacking, leaving some phenomena ambiguous.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Miracle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miracle/) [Miracles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miracles/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Phenomenon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/phenomenon/) [Philosopher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosopher/) [Spiritual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spiritual/) [Things happen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-happen/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/)

## Related quotes

> [“Reason, Hume argued, doesn’t determine what we want but only how we obtain it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/reason-hume-argued-doesn-t-determine-what-we-want-but-only-how-we/)

[Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/)

> [“Certainly the anonymous scarecrow portrait was intended to put him in his place, in much the same way as the philosopher David Hume was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chinua-achebe/certainly-the-anonymous-scarecrow-portrait-was-intended-to-put-him-in/)

[Chinua Achebe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chinua-achebe/)

> [“The most amazing miracle of every New Year is this: In the New Year, as if great things will always happen to us! Here,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/the-most-amazing-miracle-of-every-new-year-is-this-in-the-new-year-as/)

[Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [It is a miracle that New York works at all. The whole thing is implausible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-a-miracle-that-new-york-works-at-all-the-whole-thing-is/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I mean, when I think about it, what's more important? Clothes - or the miracle of new life?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-kinsella/i-mean-when-i-think-about-it-what-s-more-important-clothes-or-the/)

[Sophie Kinsella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-kinsella/)

> [“I thank God for seeing the miracle of a new morning.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/i-thank-god-for-seeing-the-miracle-of-a-new-morning/)

[Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/)

> [There is a miracle in every new beginning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/there-is-a-miracle-in-every-new-beginning/)

[Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/)

> [Jefferson, Madison and many others taught that complex laws and codes were sure signs of oppression. They agreed with Montesquieu, Lock and Hume and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-demille/jefferson-madison-and-many-others-taught-that-complex-laws-and-codes/)

[Oliver DeMille](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-demille/)

> [Nature and society are so replete with startling contrasts that wit often consists in the mere statement and comparison of facts, as when Hume…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-percy-whipple/nature-and-society-are-so-replete-with-startling-contrasts-that-wit/)

[Edwin Percy Whipple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-percy-whipple/)

> [“I have always considered David Hume as approaching as nearly the idea of a perfectly wise and virtuous man as perhaps the nature of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/i-have-always-considered-david-hume-as-approaching-as-nearly-the-idea/)

[Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/)

> [Taste is not stationary. It grows every day, and is improved by cultivation, as a good temper is refined by religion. In its most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/taste-is-not-stationary-it-grows-every-day-and-is-improved-by/)

[Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/)

> [Democrats all claim they'll get rough with the terrorists, but they can't even face Brit Hume.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-coulter/democrats-all-claim-they-ll-get-rough-with-the-terrorists-but-they/)

[Ann Coulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-coulter/)

> [The first-cause and prime-mover argument, brilliantly proffered by St. Thomas Aquinas in the fourteenth century (and brilliantly refuted by David Hume in the eighteenth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/the-first-cause-and-prime-mover-argument-brilliantly-proffered-by-st/)

[Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/)

> [“David Hume, in a moment of acute skepticism, felt panicky in the solitude of his study and had to go out and join his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-barrett/david-hume-in-a-moment-of-acute-skepticism-felt-panicky-in-the/)

[William Barrett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-barrett/)

> [Poor David Hume is dying fast, but with more real cheerfulness and good humor and with more real resignation to the necessary course of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/poor-david-hume-is-dying-fast-but-with-more-real-cheerfulness-and/)

[Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/)

## More by Neil deGrasse Tyson

> [I don't want to go into space because of war. I think we would if it was triggered. If China said they want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/i-don-t-want-to-go-into-space-because-of-war-i-think-we-would-if-it/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [Quantum physics fluctuates all the time. But now the fluctuations are not just particles coming into and out of existence, which happens all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/quantum-physics-fluctuates-all-the-time-but-now-the-fluctuations-are/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [In the movie, the stars above the ship bear no correspondence to any constellations in a real sky. Worse yet, while the heroine bobs...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/in-the-movie-the-stars-above-the-ship-bear-no-correspondence-to-any/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [The Pacific is the best toilet for satellites.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/the-pacific-is-the-best-toilet-for-satellites/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [... informed ignorance provides the natural state of mind for research scientists at the ever-shifting frontiers of knowledge. People who believe themselves ignorant of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/informed-ignorance-provides-the-natural-state-of-mind-for-research/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [If you seek only easy problems to solve, then ultimately, there'll be nothing about you to distinguish yourself from others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/if-you-seek-only-easy-problems-to-solve-then-ultimately-there-ll-be/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [The caricature of science is that we hold tight to the theories we have, and shun challenges to them. That's just not true. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/the-caricature-of-science-is-that-we-hold-tight-to-the-theories-we/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [New generations of humans inherit the acquired discoveries of generations past, allowing cosmic insight to accumulate without limit. Each discovery of science therefore adds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/new-generations-of-humans-inherit-the-acquired-discoveries-of/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [I've said multiple times that the world's first trillionaire is going to be the person who exploits the resources of asteroids, the natural resources…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/i-ve-said-multiple-times-that-the-world-s-first-trillionaire-is-going/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [ They \[scientists of centuries past\] call on God only from the lonely and precarious edge of incomprehension. Where they feel certain about their explanations,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/they-scientists-of-centuries-past-call-on-god-only-from-the-lonely/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [We explore our environment, more than we are compelled to utter poetry, when we're toddlers. We start doing that later. Before that happens, every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/we-explore-our-environment-more-than-we-are-compelled-to-utter-poetry/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [You can't have people making decisions about the future of the world who are scientifically illiterate. That's a recipe for disaster. And I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/you-can-t-have-people-making-decisions-about-the-future-of-the-world/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [Science surrounds you. It's not something that you can step aside, step over or push out of your way because you were never good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/science-surrounds-you-it-s-not-something-that-you-can-step-aside-step/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [The idea that God resides in the unknown is what philosophers call the God of the gaps. And we have this thing called science,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/the-idea-that-god-resides-in-the-unknown-is-what-philosophers-call/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [Everybody's got money for vacation time. Look at how much we all spend just to get - well, I get sick on the loop-the-loop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/everybody-s-got-money-for-vacation-time-look-at-how-much-we-all-spend/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

[Explore all 1,143 Neil deGrasse Tyson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

## More Facts quotes

> [It is indeed a surprising and fortunate fact that nature can be expressed by relatively low-order mathematical functions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-carnap/it-is-indeed-a-surprising-and-fortunate-fact-that-nature-can-be/)

[Rudolf Carnap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-carnap/)

> [So the fool, as distinct from the scoundrel, is completely self- satisfied; in fact, he can easily become dangerous, as it does not take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/so-the-fool-as-distinct-from-the-scoundrel-is-completely-self/)

[Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/)

> [He bombarded me with words, of all things, apparently clueless to the fact that the predawn hours rendered me incapable of coherent thought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darynda-jones/he-bombarded-me-with-words-of-all-things-apparently-clueless-to-the/)

[Darynda Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darynda-jones/)

> [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I'm Fine!, the most common LIE in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/i-m-fine-the-most-common-lie-in-the-world/)

[Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/)

> [The time that one gains cannot be accumulated in a storehouse; it is contradictory to want to save up existence, which, the fact is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/the-time-that-one-gains-cannot-be-accumulated-in-a-storehouse-it-is/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [What is history after all? History is facts which become lies in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-cocteau/what-is-history-after-all-history-is-facts-which-become-lies-in-the/)

[Jean Cocteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-cocteau/)

> [Don't take too much comfort in the fact that you're successful today because tomorrow could bring failure. There's no surety in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-savage/don-t-take-too-much-comfort-in-the-fact-that-you-re-successful-today/)

[Michael Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-savage/)

> [I am told many children block out the memory of trauma. In fact, the healing process can only truly begin when we are willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phoebe-stone/i-am-told-many-children-block-out-the-memory-of-trauma-in-fact-the/)

[Phoebe Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phoebe-stone/)

> [Because the truth is that gossip is as good as gospel in this town. You can save face but you won't ever save your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conor-oberst/because-the-truth-is-that-gossip-is-as-good-as-gospel-in-this-town/)

[Conor Oberst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conor-oberst/)

> [Truth be told from compulsive liars with a history/Everything must change 2nd chances are a mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-dash/truth-be-told-from-compulsive-liars-with-a-history-everything-must/)

C-DASH

> [We did an episode where she goes out to get a job and she gets fired because she's not good. They hire a babysitter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-heaton/we-did-an-episode-where-she-goes-out-to-get-a-job-and-she-gets-fired/)

[Patricia Heaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-heaton/)

> [Le biologiste passe, la grenouille reste. The biologist passes, the frog remains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rostand/le-biologiste-passe-la-grenouille-reste-the-biologist-passes-the-frog/)

[Jean Rostand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rostand/)

> [I guess he'll have to figure out someday that he is supposed to have this dark side, that it is part of what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/i-guess-he-ll-have-to-figure-out-someday-that-he-is-supposed-to-have/)

[Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/)

> [The fact -- not theory -- that evolution has occurred and the Darwinian theory as to how it occurred have become so confused in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gaylord-simpson/the-fact-not-theory-that-evolution-has-occurred-and-the-darwinian/)

[George Gaylord Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gaylord-simpson/)

[Browse all 19,906 Facts quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "In fact, I think it was the philosopher Hume who argued that it's far more likely that a miracle is a new physical phenomenon that we have yet to discover and have now discovered in that moment than it is a spiritual force coming down from God making something happen in front of you.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Neil deGrasse Tyson"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/in-fact-i-think-it-was-the-philosopher-hume-who-argued-that-it-s-far/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Facts"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/in-fact-i-think-it-was-the-philosopher-hume-who-argued-that-it-s-far/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d40/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_facts_in-fact-i-think-it-was-the-philosopher-h_2249928.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d40/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_facts_in-fact-i-think-it-was-the-philosopher-h_2249928.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d40/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_facts_in-fact-i-think-it-was-the-philosopher-h_2249928.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“In fact, I think it was the philosopher Hume who argued that it's far more likely that a miracle is a new…” — Neil deGrasse Tyson",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Neil deGrasse Tyson",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "In fact, I think it was...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/in-fact-i-think-it-was-the-philosopher-hume-who-argued-that-it-s-far/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/in-fact-i-think-it-was-the-philosopher-hume-who-argued-that-it-s-far/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
