why do catholics believe in statues?

Answer 1

Do you have pictures of your loved ones?

Statues and pictures of people we love are not idols.

Statues and paintings of Jesus and the saints are just like pictures of the people we love and respect.

The King James Version of the Bible states in Exodus 20:4: "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth"

Why were the Jews commanded not to make graven images? Graven images were the standard method of pagan worship. They were representations of false gods.

This is a very clear command.

However God commanded the Jews in Exodus 25:18 and 1 Chronicles 28:18–19, "And thou shalt make two cherubims of gold, of beaten work shalt thou make them"

And in 1 Kings chapter 7 Solomon made bulls and other images out of precious metals.

It seems obvious that the Jews did not worship the cherubims and Solomon did not worship the bulls he had made. These images did not violate the command of God. Therefore, an image not made for worship is acceptable.

In Numbers 21:8-9, "And the LORD said to Moses, "Make a saraph and mount it on a pole, and if anyone who has been bitten looks at it, he will recover." Moses accordingly made a bronze serpent and mounted it on a pole, and whenever anyone who had been bitten by a serpent looked at the bronze serpent, he recovered."

And in John 3:14-15, Jesus says in correlation, "And just as Moses lifted up the [image of a] serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life."

How can a statue of our Lord Jesus Christ dead on the cross be considered an idol to a false god? A crucifix is the message of the Gospel without words held up for all to see, a visual reminder of the sacrifice of Jesus, no different from a painting, a play, or a movie.

Catholics do not worship statues but the almighty God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

With love in Christ.

Answer 2

Are you saying that you don't believe in statues? They exist, you know.

Catholics do not worship statues, nor do they pray to them. Statues serve the same purpose in a Catholic Church that they serve in the park. They are there to honor good men and women.

Now I have a question for you. Why are Protestants so ignorant about Catholicism?

And here is another question: Why do so many protestants have portraits of Jesus? Isn't that the same as having a statue?

Answer 3

Because I am a Catholic, I will answer your question. It's not that we believe in statues. We know that for example if there is a statue of Jesus, it's not really him. What the statue does for us is serve as a reminder to us about Jesus. When I pray, I look at a statue, say of Jesus, I know that the statue is not Jesus, but it helps me to concentrate on him and not let my mind wander during prayer.

Answer 4

well yes i believe in a stutue because it exists. however a statue is only a representation of a person. the statue is nothingmore than wood or plaster or such materials - it's not the person. the statue itself is not a pointof worship - worship is for God alone. the statues are like photo's of your parents or other people you love and like to remember.

btw - many people, not only catholics believe in statues --ever been to DC? how about a memorial park or other spot where there is a statue or bust. before photography it was the only way to capture and preserve a memory. look at cameo's from back in the day.....

Answer 5

I believe in the tree in my front yard because it is there, it exists, and I can touch it.

It is not a question of whether or not a catholic believes in a statue. It is a question of whether or not they worship a statue. I believe that they revere the saint that the statue represents, and they use that as a focal point for their prayers to God.

Of course, I'm not catholic so I might be wrong..

Answer 6

I think everyone "believes" in statues.

I mean they're not imaginary and we see them everywhere.

Now if you mean "worship" statues then no they use such icons as visual representations but they don't worship them per se. The statues serve as a reminder of representation of the item that you are actually worshipping.

The Catholic Church did make a response to this question and posted it at this site http://www.catholic.com/library/Do_Catholics_Worship_Statues.asp . Give it a look and draw your own conclusions.

Answer 7

It is not the statue that is believed in, but a focal point for their praying. Some people need symbols while others are content to stand facing a wall.

Steve

Answer 8

The old - and bogus - Idolatry claim, ehe?

Just read the Bible:

Deut. 4:15 - from this verse, Protestants say that since we saw "no form" of the Lord, we should not make graven images of Him.

Deut. 4:16 - of course, in early history Israel was forbidden to make images of God because God didn't yet reveal himself visibly "in the form of any figure."

Deut. 4:17-19 - hence, had the Israelites depicted God not yet revealed, they might be tempted to worship Him in the form of a beast, bird, reptile or fish, which was a common error of the times.

Exodus 3:2-3; Dan 7:9; Matt. 3:16; Mark 1:10; Luke 3:22; John 1:32; Acts 2:3- later on, however, we see that God did reveal himself in visible form (as a dove, fire, etc).

Deut. 5:8 - God's commandment "thou shall not make a graven image" is entirely connected to the worship of false gods. God does not prohibit images to be used in worship, but He prohibits the images themselves to be worshiped.

Exodus 25:18-22; 26:1,31 - for example, God commands the making of the image of a golden cherubim. This heavenly image, of course, is not worshiped by the Israelites. Instead, the image disposes their minds to the supernatural and draws them to God.

Num. 21:8-9 - God also commands the making of the bronze serpent. The image of the bronze serpent is not an idol to be worshiped, but an article that lifts the mind to the supernatural.

I Kings 6:23-36; 7:27-39; 8:6-67 - Solomon's temple contains statues of cherubim and images of cherubim, oxen and lions. God did not condemn these images that were used in worship.

2 Kings 18:4 - it was only when the people began to worship the statue did they incur God's wrath, and the king destroyed it. The command prohibiting the use of graven images deals exclusively with the false worship of those images.

1 Chron. 28:18-19 - David gives Solomon the plan for the altar made of refined gold with a golden cherubim images. These images were used in the Jews' most solemn place of worship.

2 Chron. 3:7-14 - the house was lined with gold with elaborate cherubim carved in wood and overlaid with gold.

Ezek. 41:15 - Ezekiel describes graven images in the temple consisting of carved likenesses of cherubim. These are similar to the images of the angels and saints in many Catholic churches.

Col. 1:15 - the only image of God that Catholics worship is Jesus Christ, who is the "image" (Greek "eikon") of the invisible God.

Answer 9

We dont believe in statues. We believe that those are the closest incarnation of God and Jesus that we have, but only if it has been blessed by a preist.

I dont think that its like worshipping false idols because we believe that what those statues represent is God and holy, not gods of other religions or anything bad.

Answer 10

Its not that they believe in statues or worship them.
Think of it like of the way you have a picture of someone you love. You don't worship it, but it reminds you of them.
That's kinda how it is with pictures of Jesus or saints. The symbols remind people to pray and to remind them that they are protected by God, Jesus, Mary, and the angels and saints.