Eliminating The Impossible

Sherlock Holmes's principle that, when the impossible has been eliminated, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth is cited both in:

"Time Patrol," the first Time Patrol story, by Poul Anderson;

"The Obvious Factor," the sixth Black Widower story, by Isaac Asimov.

In "Time Patrol," the citing of the principle serves only to identify Holmes, who remains unnamed, to the reader whereas Asimov is making a point about Testimony And Evidence. See also previous blog references to David Hume. (Scroll down.)

Assessing Evidence

The High Commander of the Companions of the Arena says:

"'...if we could show that there was in fact a Jesus Christ who did in fact rise from his tomb, he may have been in a coma, not dead.'"
-Poul Anderson, The Day Of Their Return IN Anderson, Captain Flandry: Defender Of The Terran Empire (Riverdale, NY, 2010), pp. 74-238 AT 16, p. 199.

Ivar Frederiksen is surprised at such sophisticated conversation from an isolated, impoverished desert dweller, then realizes that:

no one with access to electronic communications is isolated;
this individual possibly studied at the University of Nova Roma;
living apart in a special style does not make anyone either ignorant or stupid.

I agree with the Commander. If I hear that someone has died, then see him alive, I conclude not that he has risen from the dead but that the report of his death was mistaken. David Hume argued that, in our experience, people often err or lie but never rise from the dead; therefore, it is always more probable that a report of a resurrection is false. Someone who lost consciousness after three hours of impalement, then was placed in a tomb, might have revived in the tomb. But did the tomb burial occur? See Evidence For The Resurrection.

The High Commander On Miracles

The Day Of Their Return, 16.

Yakow points out that, by definition, alleged suspensions of natural laws "'...cannot be scientifically repeated.'" (p. 199) David Hume's argument is that, in our experience, dead men never return to life whereas men often err or lie so it is always more probable that an alleged resurrection did not happen.

Yakow continues:

"'...if we could show that there was in fact a Jesus Christ who did in fact rise from his tomb, he may have been in a coma, not dead.'" (ibid.)

If a man lost consciousness after three hours of impalement, if his legs were not broken to cause suffocation, if he was not interred but placed in a tomb and if he was seen alive a few days later, then the most likely explanation is that he had not died. I used to think that this was a plausible explanation but now propose a different theory. See Evidence For The Resurrection.

Some blog readers will be uninterested in such issues. However, I follow Poul Anderson's texts - provided that I am interested in the issues raised, which I usually am.