most important book?

[Evil]

DG: There are lesbians in the bible. There are references to sex also

[Matt Brown]

ref. to sex in the bible, yes. several. However, I do not know of any passage descibing lesbians, unless you are prehaps refering to the section in levitiucs where it says not to do that.

prehaps you can enlighten me?

anyways, back on topic. good responces here people, I like the answer of the atlas.

keep them coming people!

[Evil]

I dont remember who it was... And I really dont feel like looking for it in the bible (Do I even have a bible?)... I'll surf and see if I can find it...

[OneThinkingGal and ._.]

Otg: Everything is religious is some way... Everything relates to religion

Um no...'religion relates itself to everything(pretty much anything and everything it can get away with)' is the right context. ._.

Anyway off topic.

I don't know how far the atlas itself influenced history, a lot of history was certainly made preparing the atlas we have today. Although, if we didn't have atlases we wouldn't fight over the borders, so yeah, I think that's a pretty good choice. ._.

[DGMacphee]

DG: There are lesbians in the bible. There are references to sex also

That doesn't prove that books like the ones I mentioned are religious.

Besides, I can only think of two references in the bible that relate to lesbianism, and as far as I can remember the bible condemned it (One reference was in Leviticus and other referred to Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis, but that one related to homosexuality in general).

Therefore, it doesn't make lesbianism 'religious' per se, rather it makes lesbianism against Christian religion.

Not only that, but they are only references and thus not actual lesbians in the bible, as you say.

Besides, the word 'lesbian' is derived from the Isle of Lesvos, originating from the poetry of Sappho, thus lesbian is actually more so part of Greek culture than biblical religion.

In other words, you're full of shit, Evil.  

[Evil]

Well, It might have been what my pastor used to get into my pants ... Heh, I know there is a reference to lesbians in the bible but it doesnt say that they are lesbians directly... Oh well, it could have been a time I was drunk...

[DGMacphee]

Yes.

Very drunk.  :o

[Gilbert]

Hehe offtopic here:

That reminds me of what happened here yesterday.

As the Catholic Church denies Homosexuality, several gay men and lesbians rushed into a Catholic Church during a mass, yelling loudly, for equality, etc.

When I watch the morning news today, the bishop yelled on TV that the Police Force was not doing a good job with the matter, and he's angry, and such and such.

[DGMacphee]

Obviously the cops are gay too.  

[Las Naranjas]

it's obviously part of the homosexual zionist plot.

[Captain Mostly]

HA HA HA
OF COURSE THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A
"homosexual zionist plot"
HA HA HA
WHAT AN IDEA! FAHSHAR AND SNORT! HO HO, THERE IS NO CONSPIRACY!

(aims at oranges with sniper rifle)



PS:
Sniper rifle reference not meant it an offencive topical way (if it had been, I'd have mentioned that Naranjas was at a gas station at night... But I didn't! And I'm not making light of the killings in Virginia!)

[remixor]

A lot of these responses seem more like "What book I consider the most meaningful" rather than the intended "Most influential book" prompt, but I guess that's as valid a question as any.

I could probably come up with a few titles for the former, but I can't imagine narrowing it down for the later, particularly if we exclude religious texts.

[sum-41]

Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow by Orson Scott Card.
No more needs to be said.

[remixor]

Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow by Orson Scott Card.
No more needs to be said.

Most influential books ever??

[Captain Mostly]

I think more needs to be said. As I've never heard of either of these books, and simply because you've told me that nothing more needs to be said, I'm feeling a little dumb, so I'm ascociating these books with feeling bad, which means these books are rubbish. Set me right!

ALSO:
My Mohammad book is DEFINATLY a massivly influential and not TECHNICALLY religious book. I don't know if I made it's not-a-religious-text fature clear enough before, but it isn't, and yet it has a massive effect on a religion (it's not Islamic law to follow the prophet's example, but everyone does anyway, so it's got a huge audience)

[Matt Brown]

I'd like to avoid most religious books in this thread. those are too easy! It doesnt take a whole lot of thought to determine that books in which major, earth chagning reglions follow.

I'd have to disagree with the enders books. Good novels, yes. But I simply cannot think of any change in society that has come from those books, other then prehaps inside jokes amound your friends.

[Barcik]

Another influential book would be Darwin's, whose name I cannot seem to think of at the moment.

[Trapezoid]

"Origin of the Species"?
I dunno about influential... Sure, it's caused a lot of controversy, but IMO, other than the controvery, I don't think the study of evolution has been a very big influence on history, compared to other sciences.
I think the best answers so far have been the Communist Manifesto and the Atlas...

[Captain Mostly]

GAH! Origin of the Species!!! Why didn't I think of that!

That's GOT to be the most influnential book ever. It's utterly 100% changed the way we think about ourselves as part of the world (although it's hard to really grasp how massive a chance in idiology this was, because we weren't around when there was only creationism)

The communist mannifesto is totally NOT the most important book ever. Not least because the principals put forward in it have totally failed to gain wide spread agreement. Sure, it was used to spark a few revolutions under false pretenses, and sure there are a handful of commie places left in the world (although none of them really conforming to the mannifesto) but it's presumptions and assertions will never achieve the blind faith following, and World View shattering re-think that Darwin's ramblings have managed. (Perhps because they're even more deeply flawed... But that's just me being honest.)

[Evil]

"Origin of the Species" is religious too. People thought it was sacreligiuos (sp?) much like Gailio's books...