Christians Have No Idea What Idols Are Anymore

No, that raise you've been wanting at work is not an idol in your life! Unfortunately, there is an incredible lack of basic theological understanding regarding idols today. An idol is not just something you prioritize over God in your life, an idol performs a very specific function in your attempt to connect spiritually to the denizens of the divine plane.

Nobody has ever thought that the actual wood or stone of which an idol is formed is ACTUALLY a divine being. People understand that an idol, or a shrine, is a thing of spiritual focus, it is a tool that humans have always used to connect their physical bodies to a spiritual entity. By the use of idols mankind has transcended their mortal flesh to commune with the spirit world. The idol is a physical representation of that which has no physical form, and because mankind must worship in the flesh, it is necessary to use physical apparatus to more perfectly commune. Additionally, idols exist to display the attributes of whatever spiritual entity is portrayed, again using physical matter to communicate spiritual detail.

Unfortunately, the modern Christian has no idea what an idol is, and this is because of the great secularization of the world. The modern Christian does not understand idols because he does not understand the nature of the spiritual realm, or even his own need for physical apparatus to divinely commune. There is a reason why Christians are commanded to participate in the physical ritual of Communion (Eucharist), and Christians forget this reason at their peril.

At the risk of disingenuous outreach, or just plain ignorance of other people's beliefs, Christians have forgotten the importance of idols in other religions. It is a great disservice to the modern missionary that he does not understand the nature of idols. How are we supposed to talk to people of other faiths when we have no idea what we are talking about? It's time to re-learn what our ancient Christian predecessors understood very well.