Help. Is this idolatry?

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Snow1994

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Hi all!

I have this burning question in my head. I have a few favourite actors/actresses and singers. Is it considered idolatry to have them? I mean although I like them, but I still go to church, pray to God at times of need, etc. It’s not like I completely refrain from going to church because of them (as though I’m really obsessed with them). I also like to draw too and the subjects that I draw are these favourite singers/actors so would it be alright? (I have a great love for drawing so is this considered idolatry as well?) In addition, my phone wallpaper is my favourite singer. Is it okay if I spend more time with God and less time thinking about them (while keeping the wallpaper intact in my phone?) Do I have to give up these things completely and never keep in touch with them anymore??

Any help would be appreciated! Thank you and God bless!
 
Snow1994 said:
Hi all!

I have this burning question in my head. I have a few favourite actors/actresses and singers. Is it considered idolatry to have them? I mean although I like them, but I still go to church, pray to God at times of need, etc. It’s not like I completely refrain from going to church because of them (as though I’m really obsessed with them). I also like to draw too and the subjects that I draw are these favourite singers/actors so would it be alright? (I have a great love for drawing so is this considered idolatry as well?) In addition, my phone wallpaper is my favourite singer. Is it okay if I spend more time with God and less time thinking about them (while keeping the wallpaper intact in my phone?) Do I have to give up these things completely and never keep in touch with them anymore??

Any help would be appreciated! Thank you and God bless!
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I am sitting here in my room in the seminary listening to my favorite band. I have memorabilia from my favorite movie and sports teams in my room. I have shelves upon shelves of books, some religious, some not. Some of the non-religious books are novels by my favorite authors. Tonight after dinner, if I get my homework done, I plan on doing some writing, something else I find enjoyable. If I don’t do that, I might go down to the pond and fish or watch a movie with my friends, a movie with some of my favorite actors in it. And of course, I will pray my prayers and make my holy hour.

So in short, no, it’s not idolatry. Idolatry is any time we allow something to take the place of God, any time we direct the love and adoration we owe to God to something other than God. It’s perfectly acceptable to listen to music, watch films, have a favorite actor, or whatever, so long as we don’t give them the place of God in our lives or let our affection for them consume us. It doesn’t sound like you’re in danger of this. Be at peace.

-ACEGC
 
If you worship them and pray to them in need for help or guidance it is. Otherwise it is a very normal thing called “liking art”. And if you want to draw pic’s you do so, that is what you like to do and as long you draw them with their clothes on it is OK. I have a few favorite singers, among them a very beautiful and sexy one, who BTW have a wonderfull voice, but as long as I keep it in perspective I do not sin, and neither do you. It is absolutely normal to like something, and as long it is not illicit or morally wrong it have not and will never be a sin.
 
We sometimes speak of celebrities as idols, but in most cases that is an exaggeration. It just means they have a loyal fan base. We do not really idolize or worship them, so you needn’t worry if a favorite actor/actress or singer is occasionally called an idol.

It is normal and good to look to other people and enjoy, admire, and even imitate the good we see in them. It brings us joy. It may inspire us. Let your enjoyment of favorite actors and singers bring out the best in you. However, do not make excuses for a celebrity’s bad behavior. Do not admire or imitate that.
 
So how do I love and adore God above all things? And in the future, how do I know whether I committed idolatry? (So that I know I’ll never commit again.)
 
Snow1994 said:
So how do I love and adore God above all things? And in the future, how do I know whether I committed idolatry? (So that I know I’ll never commit again.)
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Loving God above all this is not a limit! If you love something on earth a great deal, then you simply love God even more than that!
 
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