If Icons are so important, why do we not find them in the Scriptures?

Answer 1

Every time God or an angel appeared to man, the image was that of a heavenly thing, so it came under the 1st commandment.

When Jesus took on flesh, his body was the flesh image of a heavenly thing, so that also came under the 1st commandment.

Once Jesus came in the flesh, we finally knew what the one true God looked like, so there was no longer any need to worry about graven images or idols.

That was the main reason why sacred art and statuary was no longer prohibited.

Materialism is the new idolotry.

Worry about that.

Answer 2

I know what people say about their use of statues...and I also know what I saw and experienced growing up in a faith that made use of statues...and it was not quite the same thing.

I think that people have a natural tendency to grow attached to things, and it often happens that people become more attached to a particular image, or statue than might be "appropriate".

It may not be an official teaching, but unfortunately, it is an official happening.

While I think few people start out thinking a statue or image has any "power" or personality on it's own, over time I have seen people grow so attached to a particular statue or image that it was treated as if IT had power, not merely the person it represented.

I expect that this is why there are pronouncements against such in the Bible. Human nature being what it is, this behavior was witnessed way back when. It was observed that sometimes people became confused over where the power sat, in the Divine almighty, or in the image/statue that the people kept.

We see kids do it with blankies and stuffed toys all the time, but I don't think adults are immune to this tendency toward attachment and magical thinking.

No amount of theology can logic away this tendency of human nature.

Answer 3

The commandment about “graven images” is one of the most misunderstood scriptures. Consider Exodus 25: 18-19: “And make two cherubim out of hammered gold at the ends of the cover. Make one cherub on one end and the second cherub on the other; make the cherubim of one piece with the cover, at the two ends.” Here, God is commanding that images be made!

So is God contradicting himself? First he say don’t make a graven image, and then he orders graven images to be made?

No, he is not contradicting himself. The problem is that folks have misinterpreted the words “graven image.”

According to Strong’s Concordance, the original Hebrew words that were translated into “graven image” referred to idols (Here is the concordance link: http://cf.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?strongs=06459 ). Of course, we know that an idol is a false god, or something that you place above God. Since the Cheribum are not false Gods, there is no contradiction.

Therefore, also, statues in Catholic Churches are not a violation of the commandment either. (You knew I was going to go there, didn’t you?) They are not idols, because they are not false Gods. My Church has a statue of an angel, just like God commanded the Israelites to make. We have a statue of Jesus, who is CERTAINLY not a false God. We have statues of saints because they are heroes of the faith, not gods - just like America has statues of its heroes – Washington, Lincoln, etc. – and those are not idols either.

Bottom line: The commandments forbid images of false idols or false gods, but there is nothing wrong with beautiful artwork of Jesus, Mary, or angels, whether that artwork be paintings, statues, or whatever.

Answer 4

Presumably if they're are not in the Scriptures, they are not important. Scripture refers to dumb idols as being a bit of a waste of time - they cannot see, hear, or speak. Being made of wood or metal etc it's not surprising.

Answer 5

the icon's aren't important in and of themselves - they are meerly what people did for rememberances back then. no one in their right mind believes that a statue can do anything in an of itself. do i enjoy some of the beautiful religious pictures and items i have - sure - lots! are they idols - meaning do i workship them and think they can do anything for me -- heaven no - only God can do that!!!