This idea originated with the Greeks and essentially assumes that the universe is orderly and rational and is governed by predictable laws. It should be no surprise that religions are vitalistic while science is mechanistic. This allows the scientist to develop a hypothesis to explain the event and to collect evidence that would support or disprove this hypothesis. For example, one hypothesis is that Tom was swept up in a beachward current. However, there is no way a scientist could determine is God actually helped.
Related ideas are causalism and teleology .
According to teleology, events in nature occur according to a predetermined plan, in other words, everything has a time and purpose. In contrast, causalists deny predetermination, but rather, suggest that events occur in a stepwise fashion, each event setting the stage for the next. A good example would be in the novel Bridge Over San Luis Rey . In contrast, a caualist would argue that it was simply chance that those five individuals happened to be on the bridge. Perhaps their combined weight was sufficient to break the bridge after years of weathering.