What does "super-natural" mean.

[Autodidact]

When we say that an explanation, event or deity is super-natural, what do we mean? How do we identify when something is supernatural?

[Haven]

I've always taken the term to mean outside of, or in violation of, the system of nature. However, I could see how one could argue that the term is meaningless.

[Janx]

When we say that an explanation, event or deity is super-natural, what do we mean? How do we identify when something is supernatural?

An explanation that doesn't fit into our naturalistic worldview. Something that is indistinguishable from fiction with a naturalistic perspective.

By naturalistic I mean based on our experience of this world with our five senses and the conclusions drawn from that experience.

[pax]

Hey! Here is really novel idea. Why not look up the meaning of the word "supernatural" in a dikshunary? And why not do an etymological search on the origin of the word (probably Latin or Greek).

Imagine actually knowing what the word means!

Imagine not having to make erroneous speculations on what the word means!

Imagine actually using this opportunity to aquire some knowledge!

[Angel]

When we say that an explanation, event or deity is super-natural, what do we mean? How do we identify when something is supernatural?

The short definition is 'anything that transcends the laws of nature.' If we go beyond the textbook or dictionary definition, then we can ask does it involve doing things that are logically impossible, things that are immaterial, etc.

Being able to walk on water or control the weather at will may be some good examples. Or a donkey speaking in a human language.

[bjs]

That depends on our definition of “natural.�

If by “natural� we mean “obeys the laws of the physical world� then supernatural refers to something that can break the laws of the physical world.

If by “natural� we mean “everything that exists� then there is no such thing as the supernatural. God may still exist, but He fits under the definition of “natural.�

[Mithrae]

When we say that an explanation, event or deity is super-natural, what do we mean? How do we identify when something is supernatural?

What do we identify as supernatural?

- Tonnes of metal hovering in mid-air is not generally considered supernatural to us, though if folk a few centuries ago had seen a helicopter they would have said it was.

- Ghosts would be widely regarded as supernatural, but while they imply a non-physical soul or spirit not reducible to biological functions, I don't think ghosts necessarily violate any laws of nature.

- Predictive prophecy again is widely considered supernatural, but again doesn't necessarily violate any laws of nature, since the future state of a system is often regarded as following deterministically from the present state.

- That my body's volume consists largely of nothing, and what's actually there exists both as tiny particles and as waves, seems quite absurd on face value and would have been mocked by past generations; but because the knowledge comes from science, I don't consider it supernatural.

- Faster than light travel does violate our present understanding of the laws of nature, but often appears in the genre of science fiction and we generally don't label it as supernatural.


I broadly agree with Janx that the distinction is drawn from our view of the world and what is natural or normal within it, which is based on what we're familiar with. What we experience through our five senses provides the obvious starting point, but that's not the limit of what we're familiar with - our culture's veneration of science being a good example.

[Tired of the Nonsense]

What we observe of the universe is that matter operates entirely on the principle of positive and negative attraction/repulsion. This is the basis of quantum mechanics and everything that occurs naturally does so because of attaction/repulsion. Anything that occurs outside of this system would be extra-natural, or supernatural. What can you establish CONCLUSIVELY which clearly occurs which is not the result of positive and negative attraction/repulsion, and which would therefore be supernatural by definition? And by conclusively I mean something which can be generally proven to be true beyond a reasonable doubt?

[Mithrae]

What can you establish CONCLUSIVELY which clearly occurs which is not the result of positive and negative attraction/repulsion, and which would therefore be supernatural by definition?

Gravity?

[Tired of the Nonsense]

Gravity?

Positive and negative charge causes up and down quarks to bond together forming protons and neutrons, and attracting electrons...atoms. Atoms clump together producing greater and greater mass. Mass causes gravity. Everything starts with positive and negative attraction/repulsion.