"The truth is that mankind can (and certainly does) make idols out of pretty well anything."

No certainty here yet, but I wonder if perhaps Christians have gone too far with the doctrine of "idolatry" in the name of atheism.

Certainly from an OT point of view I'd think that idols were quite clearly limited to actual sculptured likenesses of created things that were believed to be actually possessed of sentience and worshiped as Gods.

In the NT this idea was marginally extended when Paul stated that covetousness is idolarty. But again can we compare lusting after stuff to lusting after people? Perhaps we can.

These days, in Christian circles an idol is anything to which you give a large portion of your time or distracts you from spending time with God, but honestly I think this is going too far.

By such definitions, the work we do, the houses we purchase, the food we eat in such abundance and the entertainment we enjoy can all be labeled idolatrous and I think this is dangerous.

For me it is a question of where the heart is. God gives us all things richly to enjoy (1 Tim 6:17) but our hope needs to be in God and not the things. If we take the wonders of this creation and in our use and enjoyment of them we honor God then I don't see that as idolatrous.

If we love a boy with passion and adoration and we recieve joy and a full heart and happiness from doing so how is that idolatry if we are living holy towards him and honouring and praising God for it all? I think that is true worship.

Blessings
Cat.