What is an idol and how dangerous is idolatry?

Since ancient times people believed in supernatural forces, spirits and gods. They were represented by different peoples in the form of animals or human images. To communicate with gods and spirits, ancient people made their images, because to worship something invisible is difficult, that's why people created the embodiment of their deity in the form of wooden or stone figures. With the advent of Christianity, ancient people were accused of idolatry. But what is an idol in fact? It is any image of a deity, its image in the form of a statue or icon.

The most famous idols of antiquity are the images of Krishna and Kali in India, Ra and Anubis in Egypt, Odin and Torah in Scandinavia, as well as statues of many ancient Greek gods. They were made of a variety of materials: wood, stone, gold or marble. Most of the idols of antiquity have been destroyed, and those that are left now are mostly valued as art objects.

In the modern interpretation of this term, there is little left of a negative attitude towards Idols in the era of the emergence of Christianity. If you look in the explanatory dictionary, what is an idol, then it is clear that this is any object that is worshiped as a deity, it is any blind worship or cult. From the point of view of psychology, the idol of a modern man can be money and any material values, success and power, any famous person. People worship these realities, honor them and direct all their attention to them. From this point of view, idolatry is very dangerous, as it takes a person away from reality.

And what is an idol in terms of the Christian religion? These are any images of other gods, except Christ. They were branded as idol worshipers, it was believed that they worshiped idols and prayed to them. In fact, the ancient peoples of the statue were the same images of the gods, as the Christians - icons. Our ancestors understood that the idol is not a god, but only its image.

Idols of the Slavs were most often made of wood, and not only because it was the most common material. Our ancestors revered nature and believed in the magical power of trees. Thus, the image of the deity acquired also the energy of the tree from which it was made. But for the same reason, now there are almost no examples, what were the wooden idols of our ancestors. They almost all were burned or turned into rubbish under the influence of time.

But the ancient Slavs also had stone idols. They are most common in the Black Sea area. The most famous stone idol was found in the 19th century in the Zbruch River. It is a tetrahedral column covered with images. They are located in three tiers, it is believed that this reflects the faith of our ancestors in the worlds of Navi, Yavi and Prav. The upper tier is the four faces of the gods, most likely Kupala, Yarilo, Lada and Kolyada.

But basically all the idols of the Slavs were destroyed, and the beliefs of our ancestors are collected in bitterness. Most of all this is known from the Christian texts, in which the ancient Slavs are represented as idolaters. But if you carefully study what an idol is, you can say the same about the Christians themselves. After all, their icons, statues and even crosses are also idols, which they worship.