The game is very simple; select a historical figure you feel to be "great", in deed, character or influence, or all three.

In contrary to the usual, comments on the selections of others are welcome.



My selection is Mohandas K. Gandhi, who I consider to be possibly the greatest man ever to live. The Mahatma crossed cultural and spiritual boundaries and preached peace, equality, and respect for all beliefs and peoples. Using his doctrine of non-violent civil resistence, he won India its freedom without firing a shot or raising a sword.

He also took great strides towards the elevation of those labeled "unclean" by India's corrupt (and now largely-abandoned) caste system, and earlier in life fought against South African apartheid.

He drew his influences from his career as a lawyer, the Qu'ran, the teachings of Hindu, and the New Testament, and proved that morality can be stronger than racism and hate.

I'll say the Apostle Paul. Converted from an enemy of the Christian Faith on the road to Damascus, Paul becomes one of the greatest missionaries to the Gentiles of the day. If it was not for Paul and his efforts to reach the Romans, there is a good chance Christianity would not be as widespread as it is today. His letters to the various churches he started and visited also provide valuable guidelines for the faith of many.

A close runner up is a group of people, not one. They would be the religious rulers of Israel during the time of Jesus, and shortly subsequent. Through their actions against the faith of the Christ-followers, Christianity spread like wildfire.

And thirdly, I greatly admire Abraham Lincoln. He went from self-educated farm boy to lawyer to the president of the United States, carried the weight of the nation upon his shoulders during a time of Civil War, and was assassinated when the end was in sight. And through it all he remained a great man of God. If it had not been for him, the United States would most certainly be a different country than it is now. How different is open to speculation, but I believe we would be splintered into several small countries. We could do with another Abraham these days.


About Ghandi, I've never read too much about him, but I do know he changed history as you say. I'm not too sure about how abandoned the caste system is though, from what I read on occasion it's still prevalent.

Hitle- I mean Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Changed America around after the depression, and broke the rules. My type of guy. He wasn't scared of doing drastic changes, and took many risks. In the end, most of his ideas, are still used today.

Not nearly as prevalent as it once was, Kas. It used to be extremely, extremely rigid. It has to do with the reincarnation system that most eastern religions believe in. Gandhi's particular work had to do primarily with the "untouchable" caste, as I said, which is the class that performs tasks considered "unclean"; for instance, cleaning latrines. Gandhi insisted that "untouchables" be instead referred to by a word which means "god's children", and made it a point to perform such tasks himself.

As a short background on the Mahatma's work, his ideology was essentially to peacefully, non-violently protest the laws you disagree with, and take the blows rained down upon you for it. Something about "offer him the other cheek"... maybe you know what I'm talking about, there, Kas. I think it's from some book.

He and the Hindus and Muslims of India were repeatedly subjected to brutal treatment by the English police forces, being repeatedly beaten, arrested, and detained. They never raised a hand in reply, resulting in media outcries and gaining all the more support for his cause. (For those who are out in left field, that cause was an India free from English oppression and unfair taxation... somewhat similar to a certain western nation. I forget which one, though... maybe someone else can help me out there. I seem to recall that that one, however, made use of the tactic known as "all out war and slaughter" to gain their freedom. Any ideas, here...?)


Paul has always seemed like a glorified missionary to me. Doing nothing but furthering one's own religion seems like self-advancement...

Abraham Lincoln... interesting. His story of self-elevation certainly is an impressive one. (And, what, isn't Bush good enough for you guys...? ;) )

FDR is a pretty good choice.

Benji Disraeli, the godfather of soul.

Um, i mean Liberalism.

Originally Posted by Theren Gevel:

My selection is Mohandas K. Gandhi, who I consider to be possibly the greatest man ever to live. The Mahatma crossed cultural and spiritual boundaries and preached peace, equality, and respect for all beliefs and peoples. Using his doctrine of non-violent civil resistence, he won India its freedom without firing a shot or raising a sword.

He also took great strides towards the elevation of those labeled "unclean" by India's corrupt (and now largely-abandoned) caste system, and earlier in life fought against South African apartheid.

He drew his influences from his career as a lawyer, the Qu'ran, the teachings of Hindu, and the New Testament, and proved that morality can be stronger than racism and hate.

Actually, I'll change mine to the four members of Led Zeppelin.

They are, without a shadow of a doubt, four great men who set the standard for, and shaped all that was rock to follow.

Alexander the Great

Can't forgot old Willie Wallace and Robert the Bruce while I'm here, now can I?

The history of Wallace and Bruce is a very interesting one, and I'm speaking of stuff other than Braveheart.