Idol worship

[Hokomai]

Well, I suppose Protestants do worship a material being that is believed to have been God- All Christians do- His name is Jesus!

A very good point! I guess I should say ‘artifact’ and not ‘object’.

 

[JonNC]

So are churches that believe in the Real Presence unique in worshiping a material object in the belief that it is (has become) God? **

Well, it isn’t a matter of “belief”, as Christ used the words you said, “This is…”. But that said, I think unique is a curious term here. Prior to folks like Zwingli, the entire Church, east and west, proclaimed the real presence. So, that belief would not be unique, but universal. ISTM the belief in a symbolic presence is the “unique” viewpoint.

Jon

 

[Cat]

It’s an interesting question.

I’ve been searching the Bible for a clear-cut example of a “idol” actually being a “god,” and not just the “image of the god.”

In Isaiah 37:19, King Hezekiah (my favorite person in the Bible other than the Lord Jesus!) is facing an attack by Assyria, and he prays, “…the kings of Assyria have devastated all the countries and their lands, and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. So they have destroyed them.”

(italics mine)

It seems to me that this passage speaks of the actual statues as the “gods,” not just images of the gods. King Hezekiah specifically say, “They cast their gods into the fire,” implying that that was the end of their gods. If the statues had just been images of the god, then the worshippers could just carve another statue. But they didn’t because their god was burned up. They would have to create another “god.”

 

[PaladinSword]

I was attacked by demons at burningman. Burningman kind of seems like it is leaning towards idol worship.

 

[MartyrForJesus]

Demons work disguised as idols.

 

[Hokomai]

It’s an interesting question.

I’ve been searching the Bible for a clear-cut example of a “idol” actually being a “god,” and not just the “image of the god.”

In Isaiah 37:19, King Hezekiah (my favorite person in the Bible other than the Lord Jesus!) is facing an attack by Assyria, and he prays, “…the kings of Assyria have devastated all the countries and their lands, and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. So they have destroyed them.”

(italics mine)

It seems to me that this passage speaks of the actual statues as the “gods,” not just images of the gods. King Hezekiah specifically say, “They cast their gods into the fire,” implying that that was the end of their gods. If the statues had just been images of the god, then the worshippers could just carve another statue. But they didn’t because their god was burned up. They would have to create another “god.”

Thanks for this Cat - but I wonder if this was the way the worshipers of the statues actually thought. I realised on looking up Hezekiah that it was he would broke the bronze serpent of Moses because it too had become an object of idolatry - but there is no indication that the Jews who did this actually thought it was a god.

 

[Hokomai]

Well, it isn’t a matter of “belief”, as Christ used the words you said, “This is…”. But that said, I think unique is a curious term here. Prior to folks like Zwingli, the entire Church, east and west, proclaimed the real presence. So, that belief would not be unique, but universal. ISTM the belief in a symbolic presence is the “unique” viewpoint.

Jon

I meant unique among religions - animist, Hindu etc. I’m very tempted to respond on the belief idea - but I’ll try to keep the thread focused! Thanks Jon.

 

[Nicea325]

So are churches that believe in the Real Presence unique in worshiping a material object in the belief that it is (has become) God? **

Did not God incarnate into man? Humanity is involved with time,space and matter. Jesus was also human.