1. HUM_206_03D Madeline Cortes
Prof. Malafry Student ID: 432071
Idolatry in the Christian World 05/27/14
IDOLATRY IN THE CHRISTIAN WORLD
“…Thou shalt have no other godsbefore me…” (Church of England, 1611, Ex. 20:3).
“…La ilaha illa ‘llah…” (The Hadith Collection, #0740).
“…I amthe way, the truth, and the life…” (Church of England, 1611, Jn 14:6)
The concept that there is one true God is at the foundation of every monotheistic
religionand Christianityis no exception. Monotheists believe that recognizingany
other god beyond the one true God is to practice idolatry. In ancient times, these idols
were easier to recognize;as physical graven images, it was relativelysimple to pinpoint
and reject them as false gods. But as our text so wisely points out, idolatryis not only
an ancient problem – even modernChristianityis susceptible to it.
Idolatry, as Christ definedit, is simply the act of placing any object, physical or
spiritual, above God. It is not necessaryto physicallybow down and worship these
idols, provided that they hold a greater importance inthe believer’s mind than God
Himself. Indeed, it is possible to unwittingly commit idolatry. Perhaps one of the best
descriptions of modernidolatrywas given to us by C.S. Lewis’ Screwtape when he
discussedwhat he calledan attitude of “Christianity And”: “…If they must be
Christians let them at least be Christianswith a difference. Substitute forthe faith itself
some Fashionwith a Christian colouring…” (Lewis, 1942).
Early Christians formedtheir churchbased heavily on the ideologyof the
mystical body of Christ, referringto Christ as the vine and all Christians as the
branches. This church was formedof two parts: the invisible and the visible. The
Invisible Church, made up of all Christians and invigorated by the Holy Spirit, was
perfect and above reproach. The Visible Church, however, because it was formedof
imperfect humans, containedmany faults (Smith, 1994). As long as the remembrance of
Jesus’effect ontheir lives remainedin the forefront, the earlyChristians were filled
with a notable joyand a love for all mankind. Very soon, though, disagreements among

2. HUM_206_03D Madeline Cortes
Prof. Malafry Student ID: 432071
Idolatry in the Christian World 05/27/14
the fledglingchurch’s members began to spring up. From the time that Paul
admonished the church in Corinthfor quibbling over their leaders, idolatrybegan to
weaken the Visible Church’s foundations (Church of England, 1611, ICor. 1:10-15).
From its original groundwork on the belief that Jesus Christ was the Son of God
incarnate, Christianitysplinteredinto countless sects. RomanCatholicism, Eastern
Orthodox, and Protestant branches and their numerous variations sproutedup over
several generations. Catholics placedthe authorityof church decisions inthe hands of
the pope, EasternOrthodox preferredamore corporate view toward church
management and retaineda good deal of mysticism. Bothof these sects hadnumberless
sacraments, traditions, and customs that were viewed by many of their adherents as
necessaryfor salvation. Protestantism rejectedthesetraditions infavor of belief in
justificationby faithalone. Perhaps based on their previous involvement in the
ceremonial Catholic faith, Protestants warnedagainst “absolutizing the relative” (Smith,
1994). They sought to achieve what the earlyChristians had: a pure communionwith
God, untouched by human tradition.
Still, even with concentratedeffort to avoididolatry, Protestants have
customarilyplacedone dogma in priority: that of the infallibilityof the Bible. Rather
than argue whether or not the Bible is, in fact, God’s perfect Word, it would be wise to
consider again the meaning of idolatry. If the argument over the legitimacyof the Bible
causes a believer to remove his eyes from the One True God and diverts him from his
goal of true communionwith Him, isn’t even this seeminglynoble belief a form of
idolatry?
A prerequisite to true communionwithGod is complete self-forgetfulness, for
only by removing the self from the way can one truly know God (Malafry). It would
seem that it isn’t only one’s own ego that must be removedfrom the picture;it is also
necessaryto ignore other selves. “…I count all things but loss forthe excellency of the
knowledgeof ChristJesus my Lord: forwhom Ihave sufferedthe loss of all things, and
do count them but dung, that Imay win Christ…” (Churchof England, 1611, Phil. 3:8).

3. HUM_206_03D Madeline Cortes
Prof. Malafry Student ID: 432071
Idolatry in the Christian World 05/27/14
It matters little whether the self that is being exaltedis one’s own ego or the
Pope. Even the belief inthe infallabilityof a group of believers or the integrityof a
specific versionof the Bible cancause self-righteousnessand create a cliq-like
atmosphere betweenpeople of the same opinion. It would seem that if belief ina person
or a concept blurs the message of religionand stands in the way of true knowledge of
and communionwith God then it is, by His own definition, idolatry.
Works Cited
Church of England.(1611). Holy Bible - Authorized King JamesVersion .
Lewis,C.S. (1942). ScrewtapeLetters. HarperOne.
Malafry,Hugh. (s.f.). Module8: Noteson the Gospel of John.
http://www.sevenrays.us/Archaeus/206_-_module_8.htm
Smith,Huston.(1994). World's Religions. HarperOne.
The Hadith Collection.(s.f.). www.hadithcollection.com.
http://www.hadithcollection.com/sahihmuslim/132-
Sahih20Muslim%20Book%2004.%20Prayer/10647-sahih-muslim-book-004-hadith-
number-0740.html