We Might Be Committing Idolatry?

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fredms3

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Would you agree that idolatry does not only refer to images but to things which take away our disposition on the hierarchy of values.

Idol – (Eidolon in Greek) is primarily a phantom, a mirage in the mind, a likeness, or an idea, fancy or value.

To consider any being an idol is to give an exaggerated and excessive subjective value on the particular being making it a “realization” or “embodiment” of some ideal.

Relationship can be an idol. Let’s take this verse as sample:

Matthew 10:37

New International Version (NIV)
37 “Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.

Imagine our relationship with our parents can become idolatry.

Any position on this…
 
If you put any thing or any body over that of God, then yes, its quite possible you are committing idolatry.

Money…
job…
movie stars…
sports stars…

the list goes on and on
 
fredms3 said:
Imagine our relationship with our parents can become idolatry.

Any position on this…
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Possible, but simply loving your parents a lot can’t cause it. The problem would occur when you put having cordial relations with your parents above God (say, for example, you refuse to take your children to Church despite believing in God because your parents are atheists and get on you for it).

But God orders us to honor our parents, and so doing so in a correct manner that does not put their desires or feelings above your obligations to God is fine.

(I am discounting the idea of actually consciously thinking that your parents are God because that seems unlikely to actually happen, clearly such worship would be bad but honoring them is always good with the caveats above.)
 
I honor God by honoring my parents. I try to make love of God the reason for all that I do. I think that is the way to avoid idolatry, which I define as putting anyone or anything ahead of God.
 
fredms3 said:
Would you agree that idolatry does not only refer to images but to things which take away our disposition on the hierarchy of values.

Idol – (Eidolon in Greek) is primarily a phantom, a mirage in the mind, a likeness, or an idea, fancy or value.

To consider any being an idol is to give an exaggerated and excessive subjective value on the particular being making it a “realization” or “embodiment” of some ideal.

Relationship can be an idol. Let’s take this verse as sample:

Matthew 10:37

New International Version (NIV)
37 “Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.

Imagine our relationship with our parents can become idolatry.

Any position on this…
Click to expand...
It is indeed possible for most anything to become an “Idol” when we allow it to become equal to or above the Truine God.
I think that your reference to Mt 10:37 is a good one, for it says if you love another (even ones we are commanded to love and to hone) MORE than God, then you are not worthy of everlasting life.
This is why it is so important for all of us to recognize the great laws of Love (Mt 22:36-40) and to keep them in their proper order and perspective.
We love God above all else and with everything we’ve got. THEN we love our neighbor as ourselves.

In the Dialogues of St Catherine if is recorded that the love of neighbor is of such import because we cannot Love God as he truly deserves to be loved. So we show our love of God through our love of neighbor…

Of course the above does not get into the many other types of idols we can have - the most common is probably money…but all of these things tend to stem from insufficient faith and trust and Love for God.

Peace
James
 
A funny story about that- My priest served in India for 6 or 7 years. Over there cricket is hugely popular, much like soccer in Europe and football in the U.S. He said that the seminarians under him would often gather in the lounge to watch the cricket matches. One day before a big match, he put two candles on either side of the television set and some burning incense in front of it. When the seminarians came in, they said “Father, what is this?” The priest replied, “I just thought that I would get things ready for your worship time.” He was making a point, not forbidding them from watching cricket, but teaching them to keep things in their proper perspective.
 
coachkfan1 said:
A funny story about that- My priest served in India for 6 or 7 years. Over there cricket is hugely popular, much like soccer in Europe and football in the U.S. He said that the seminarians under him would often gather in the lounge to watch the cricket matches. One day before a big match, he put two candles on either side of the television set and some burning incense in front of it. When the seminarians came in, they said “Father, what is this?” The priest replied, “I just thought that I would get things ready for your worship time.” He was making a point, not forbidding them from watching cricket, but teaching them to keep things in their proper perspective.
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:rotfl:

Peace
James
 
How about overly concern on the beautification of our face and body?
 
JRKH said:
Self Idolization is indeed a problem.

Peace
James
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Indeed. Vanity is one of the Capital sins. And this is one of the things that taking away our focus on God. We are so much focus on ourselves. We are making ourselves another God
 
Kind of my reasoning why I don’t do the veneration of the cross though I go to the service. The hygene don’t bother me. But many kiss the cross and for me I don’t quite see what they are kissing/worshipping. Don’t get me wrong, I understand their point etc. Just for me, I don’t get it and so won’t do so.
 
JRKH said:
It is indeed possible for most anything to become an “Idol” when we allow it to become equal to or above the Truine God.
I think that your reference to Mt 10:37 is a good one, for it says if you love another (even ones we are commanded to love and to hone) MORE than God, then you are not worthy of everlasting life.
This is why it is so important for all of us to recognize the great laws of Love (Mt 22:36-40) and to keep them in their proper order and perspective.
We love God above all else and with everything we’ve got. THEN we love our neighbor as ourselves.

In the Dialogues of St Catherine if is recorded that the love of neighbor is of such import because we cannot Love God as he truly deserves to be loved. So we show our love of God through our love of neighbor…

Of course the above does not get into the many other types of idols we can have - the most common is probably money…but all of these things tend to stem from insufficient faith and trust and Love for God.

Peace
James
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Indeed. Actually for me, money and lust nowadays, are the number one (equal in intensity) idols in the list that satan is peppering us. As Christ said: “You cannot serve two master at the same time, You will either one and love the other…”

And how Adultery?
 
I mean ----- “Either you will hate one and love the other…”

Love God above all…

Can we love God without first loving and knowing ourselves…What is it therefore in loving ourselfves that we don’t fall in idolatry?
 
fredms3 said:
I mean ----- “Either you will hate one and love the other…”

Love God above all…

Can we love God without first loving and knowing ourselves…What is it therefore in loving ourselfves that we don’t fall in idolatry?
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There is a perfect example of incoherent gobbledy gook.
 
englishredrose said:
Kind of my reasoning why I don’t do the veneration of the cross though I go to the service. The hygene don’t bother me. But many kiss the cross and for me I don’t quite see what they are kissing/worshipping. Don’t get me wrong, I understand their point etc. Just for me, I don’t get it and so won’t do so.
Click to expand...
The point is the same point you might make by kissing a picture of your husband, or perhaps sleeping in a t-shirt of his, if he were away from home.

We remember those who we cannot see physically, and we show honour and love of them, by honouring their image or something associated with them. We don’t honour the objects in any way for themselves, but purely for their association with those we love.
 
fredms3 said:
I mean ----- “Either you will hate one and love the other…”

Love God above all…

Can we love God without first loving and knowing ourselves…What is it therefore in loving ourselves that we don’t fall in idolatry?
Click to expand...
I think that the above is going to require some additional explaining.

First of all, it is dangerous to take such tiny snippets of Scripture and try to build some sort of understanding.

Second, just because I know and love myself, does not mean that I worship myself. In fact, the more I know myself the less likely I am to fall into self idolization.
The more I know about myself, the more humble I become and the more amazed I am that there are others who love me. This in turn makes me even more grateful for that love and eager to return it to them.
Thus, I Love God above all else, at least partly because I know that I am not worthy of the Love that God has given me. I know this because I know myself.

Peace
James
 
JRKH said:
I think that the above is going to require some additional explaining.

First of all, it is dangerous to take such tiny snippets of Scripture and try to build some sort of understanding.

Second, just because I know and love myself, does not mean that I worship myself. In fact, the more I know myself the less likely I am to fall into self idolization.
The more I know about myself, the more humble I become and the more amazed I am that there are others who love me. This in turn makes me even more grateful for that love and eager to return it to them.
Thus, I Love God above all else, at least partly because I know that I am not worthy of the Love that God has given me. I know this because I know myself.

Peace
James
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Indeed. The more we know ourselves the more we know our limitations as well as our aspirations. And in knowing fully ourselves, we would realized our nothingness in the eyes of God and how He loves us very much notwithstanding our incapacity to offer the same love to Him.

This realization would propel us then to love God the more.
 
fredms3 said:
Indeed. The more we know ourselves the more we know our limitations as well as our aspirations. And in knowing fully ourselves, we would realized our nothingness in the eyes of God and how He loves us very much notwithstanding our incapacity to offer the same love to Him.

This realization would propel us then to love God the more.
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I disagree with the idea that we are nothing in the eyes of God. Such an idea flies in the face of the fact that, “God so loved the world (us) that He sent His only begotten Son…”

Allowing such thinking can lead to despair so I urge you to purge this from your mind.

We may be unworthy servants and disobedient and undeserving children, but we are most definitely NOT “nothingness in the eyes of God”…

As to our incapacity to Love God as he deserves…This is quite true and is the basis for the second Great commandment as set forth in Mt 22:36-40. We love God to our fullest capacity by Loving our neighbors as ourselves.

Peace
James
 
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