Christianity is supposedly a monotheistic religion... that is, it supposedly represents the oneness of God. However, instead of drawing all sustenance and inspiration from this ultimate unity of all things and beings, most Christians I have met place their religion, the Bible, and their various conceptions of Jesus as the supreme authority to give themselves up to. By doing this they essentially make these things into idols. They do not stop here, however. They also claim that God has an antithesis in a being called Satan. By creating such a duality in their minds they blatantly deny the supreme sovereignty and oneness of God.
Such blatant idolotry brings nothing good into this world. Deny it if you will; it's still idolatry.
2007-05-23 18:52:37 · 26 answers · asked by marvin 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Well if you study christian history this has been a ongoing strugle among all denominations of the faith. In fact this was one of Matin Luther's 99 thesis statements about the issues of the catholic church (I'm pretty sure). He was worried that the placement of the holy mother becoming more worshiped and glorified than her son.
Even the middle ages were abound in relics which people claimed had the power of God in them (the shrowd, possible pieces of the actual cross, etc.). Call it idolatry if you want, some would say it's reminders of their faith.
Being a christian myself I do wear a cross around my neck every day, but I don't worship or glorify this piece of jewlery. I'd agree with you that some people do this because they know no other way of their faith, but I've been taught that it's not the relic or item itself that has the power, but rather what the item reminds us of and who ultimately has the power. Being a christian I source this power in my life to the big man upstairs, not the cross I wear around my neck. I wear the cross around my neck to remind me of who gives me my power, life, and blessings. Humans need things to remind them of memories or they are easily forgotten. How many memories have you forgotten and then when going through your closet found an item that brings back memories of a time or place?
Most Christianity teachings will tell you that you shouldn't worship or glorify idols (and yes these can be objects or people), but they also teach you that there can be things that contain power (ie Moses staff, etc.), or remind us of stories or people. Humans have been telling stories passed down through the generations for years, these items (the bible, images of Jesus, crosses, the chalass) are no different then the old shaumens telling stories of the previous generation. There's nothing different in the christian religion regarding this compared to any other religion that claims to be monotheistic.
Monotheism doesn't mean that there isn't other God's or idols (example: the Egyptians during the old testimate). Monotheism merely means that someone worships one higher source of power. If you mention Satan he received his source of power from God, thus Monotheism. You forget that God created Satan, but he choose to dissent. Brass tax Monotheism doesn't mean that there aren't other things to be worshipped or glorified. Just that a person worships one main source. Polytheism is where a person worships multiple sources of power and that each source has it's own unique power (ie those who believe there's a water god, a fire god, and a earth god, etc.).
Hope this explains things.
2007-05-23 19:19:49 · answer #1 · answered by Dear Abby 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
well, first of all are you a Christian? because i dont think you are..
idolatry is a sin, as stated in the old testament, those who worship idols will be punished because our God is a jealous God and that He is our Lord, our God and that we shall not have other gods before Him. We do not worship idols. We do not worship the mental images of Jesus, nor the bible, nor the carved images of the saints. What we worship is the person that the carved image represents, the Lord, our God. The bible, on the other hand, is the written tradition that compiles all the stories of our religion, like the holy Qura'an of the Islam. It is where we based upon our actions, words and deeds. We do not worship the saints for they are not our God. They are the holy persons that serve as our models to look up on to.
We do not claim that God has an antithesis because God is God and that satan is not a god. It is therefore wrong to compare God with satan.
2007-05-24 02:28:06 · answer #2 · answered by bLueaddicT 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Couldn't agree with you more. But you have to realize it's Man's inherant nature to grasp onto things that feel secure during times of uncertainty and fear. Just like we grab for things instinctively when catastrophy strikes.
Idols of Jesus and such are the Teddy Bears and blankies of religion, Satan being that dark creepy closet across the room at night. Childhood fears, adulthood fears, they're all based on the same primal fears. Just adults seem to like glitter glamour on a velveteen base more than kids do. And who can argue with sad Jesus bleeding for our sins?! Never mind the sick ritual about it all, that is every bit pegan as any pegan religion Christian mongers deem Satanic.
Jesus' original teachings, like the oneness concept of God you mention, got mamed and twisted after his death when his follower's imaginations got the best of them attempting to keep the cult from straying, hence the evils of straying as preached today. And folks with egos and oppressed sexual issues decided to make political quests of Jesus' legacy to empower their hats with what their penises lacked. Now people use religion as cordless power tools to crucify those they fear, control those they want backing them up, and make some good hard cash along the way.
No, there is no logic in most religion as it's practiced and preached today, it's all about economics and political power as it's been for centuries before. Just take a good look at Jerry Falwell's legacy and you'll see how obvious that is. Poor Tinky Winky, what did he ever do to anybody? But it takes weak minds with a need for teddy bears and bigots like Jerry to fuel it all. You're a sinner, bring on the cat-o-nines, we're gonna have us a party!
Those few who live by the essence of Christianity's origins are far out-numbered by the hippocrytes who don't.
2007-05-24 03:01:32 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
No Christians worship the Bible itself. Neither do we bow down and worship the crosses we wear around our neck. The cross is to Christians what the Ark of the Covenant was for Jews. We do not worship the cross itself, we just hold it as a reminder that Christ bore our inequities.
2007-05-24 02:08:27 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
The Bible is a guide for Christians on how they are to live their lives in God's image and a reminder of His love for His people throughout time. Images of Jesus help Christians to focus on Him during prayer so they do not stray away and think of idle things. Christianity helps people as a community to come together and worship God. I hope you understand :)
2007-05-24 02:01:10 · answer #5 · answered by Sugar Sweet 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
The Bible is the Holy Word of God.
The cross is a reminder of the price that was paid.
Jesus is God in the flesh.
If you knew Jesus you would know this.<><
2007-05-24 01:59:11 · answer #6 · answered by funnana 6 · 2⤊ 1⤋
You didn't flunk psychology, you flunked LOGIC!
This "argument" of yours is so convoluted, so chaotic, so "all over the place" it cannot be broken down to be understood. It is filled with fallacies, lacks consistent, sound, and complete arguments, and defies any reasoned argumentation.
It's no wonder you... um... "non-Christians" ... can't figure us Christians out. You accuse us of not thinking logically! How can you ever proffer that "rant" as evidence of your mental and logical superiority?
2007-05-24 02:53:39 · answer #7 · answered by wyomugs 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I really don't think you were asking a question here. it seems you have already made up your mind and this post is simply a statement (though in the form of a question) of your personal judgement. perhaps you may want understand in depth what you are criticizing first before making careless declarations like this. =)
2007-05-24 02:07:33 · answer #8 · answered by chinita.eyes 1 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Christians do not worship idols. These idols symbolize the presence of Jesus and God whom we worship.
2007-05-24 01:57:04 · answer #9 · answered by James 1 · 3⤊ 1⤋
"Truth be told, the greatest idolatry being perpetrated today is by those who have substituted finite religious text for an infinite God. The extreme elements within Islam and Christianity (and some religious Zionists in Israel) are currently unable to distinguish between God and God’s written word."
2007-05-24 01:58:54 · answer #10 · answered by dreamed1 4 · 1⤊ 3⤋