Last Sunday’s discussion time at church revolved around idolatry.
“Isn’t it idolatry when something controls you?” someone asked.
“No,” I said. “That’s addiction.” I’d just finished off a mug of coffee that I’d filled half from the decaf pot and half from the regular pot before learning that both pots were fully regular. “Idolatry is more about ‘I’ and ‘do’–it’s when we try to control something, to do something we want. I sometimes find myself idolizing my house projects, and fretting about the $50,000 I don’t have to do them with. I think that’s my idolatry. So I’m thinking about playing the lottery.”
“If you don’t play, you’ll never get the chance to lose,” someone said.
“Is it idolatry that I like to read the news on the computer every morning rather than reading more from the Bible?” someone else said.
“Why are computers so appealing–even addicting?” I said. “Because we can control our ‘existence’ on them so thoroughly. We are in charge when we’re in our virtual worlds. We pick the news outlets and expect to get what we want immediately and even effortlessly. We edit our photos so they look how we want them. We’re in charge.”
Then someone mentioned idolizing Jesus, and I just had to jump in and keep on going: “That’s the problem with religion–we try to control Jesus. We idolize him, and try to make him ours and in our image.”
Tomorrow: Sunday. More coffee.
