A Prayer by Dave Sim

Discussion of the nature of Ultimate Reality and the path to Enlightenment.
Kevin Solway
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Re: A Prayer by Dave Sim

Post by Kevin Solway »

Dave Sim wrote:In fact Islam intentionally avoids the deification of Mohammed that is the core of Christianity
Try telling that to practicing Muslims! They are certainly personally attached to Mohammed as though he were a God of some sort. There was an intellectual at a Pakistani University who said that Mohammed's parents can't have been Muslim because Islam didn't even exist at that time - and he received a death sentence from the Muslim clerics for this great sin.

Then there was all that mess about the cartoonists who were depicting Mohammed in their cartoons.

I reckon that Sim must believe that Islam is something entirely different to what Muslims actually practise in the real world, just as we know that Christianity, or the teaching of Christ, is entirely unrelated to what Christians practice.
Muhammad could arguably have been said to have demanded a certain superiority, but only in the sense outlined above: don't fall short and don't overreach.
That sounds like "The Middle Way" of Buddhism . . . if you want to look at it optimistically . . .
He was told to say that he was "God's last messenger and the seal of the prophets."
Couldn't this be interpreted to be saying that he was the most recent messenger, at the time?

Again, I'm trying to project wisdom onto Mohammed's words - if indeed they were his words and not those of someone else.

--

I think there's a definite chance that Sim might lose his mind unless he gets some rational input from outside his frame of reference. He seems to be getting lost in that jumble of words, and digging himself in deeper and deeper, like a car getting bogged-down in mud and spinning its tyres.
Kevin Solway
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Re: A Prayer by Dave Sim

Post by Kevin Solway »

I've just watched this video, and at least 90% of what Sim says is simply rubbish.

A typical example is when he asks the audience, "How many of the people here believe in God?"

A completely worthless question!

The audience has no idea what he means by "God", and I doubt that he himself has any idea.

It's like saying, "I believe in something or other. How many people here believe in something or other? Hmmm . . . about fifty percent."

Classic!
Greg Shantz
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Re: A Prayer by Dave Sim

Post by Greg Shantz »

Kevin Solway wrote:I think there's a definite chance that Sim might lose his mind ...
Fortunately, I have this unshakeable grasp of reality. -Dave Sim
Kevin Solway
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Re: A Prayer by Dave Sim

Post by Kevin Solway »

Greg Shantz wrote:Fortunately, I have this unshakeable grasp of reality. -Dave Sim
When did he say that? Five years ago?
Greg Shantz
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Re: A Prayer by Dave Sim

Post by Greg Shantz »

27 August 07
Kevin Solway
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Re: A Prayer by Dave Sim

Post by Kevin Solway »

I'd really like to get him on a podcast, but I haven't been able to get him on the phone. Would you like to go and visit him Greg, and see if he wants to do a podcast with us?

Writing him a letter seems a long way to go about it.
Greg Shantz
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Re: A Prayer by Dave Sim

Post by Greg Shantz »

Kevin Solway wrote:Would you like to go and visit him Greg, and see if he wants to do a podcast with us?
I'll see what I can do.
Writing him a letter seems a long way to go about it.
It may be the only way!
Greg Shantz
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Re: A Prayer by Dave Sim

Post by Greg Shantz »

I think Sim is enlightened.
Kevin Solway
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Re: A Prayer by Dave Sim

Post by Kevin Solway »

Any reason in particular?
Greg Shantz
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Re: A Prayer by Dave Sim

Post by Greg Shantz »

Evidence of his having an understanding of God:
Because I say what is empirically true: nothing exists except God, I am deemed to be insane.
This is from Following Cerebus #11, November 2007.

This quote, his other writings and his life have led me to this conclusion.

It also seems unlikely that he will do a podcast. He sees himself as functioning in the context of comics readers. I will keep trying to get him for one, however. :-)
Kevin Solway
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Re: A Prayer by Dave Sim

Post by Kevin Solway »

Greg Shantz wrote:Evidence of his having an understanding of God:
Because I say what is empirically true: nothing exists except God, I am deemed to be insane.
Yes, that's a nice, clear idea.

He does muddy the waters a lot though.
Greg Shantz
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Re: A Prayer by Dave Sim

Post by Greg Shantz »

I wrote:
It also seems unlikely that [Sim] will do a podcast.
I have asked Dave Sim about doing a Reasoning Show podcast here and he responded:
I'll be happy to discuss doing the podcast about a month from now. Right now, I have exactly twenty-four days until the retailers are going to be deciding how many glamourpuss to order, so this is literally all that I'm doing until after S.P.A.C.E. Thanks for the invitation.
So I will see where I can go from here.
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