You are mistaken. This was not an anti-Catholic removal of normal statues found in a church. It was a removal of pagan fertility goddess icons that were recently added.
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They are all our wonderful statues, used in only veneration, passed down from our head Peter.
As such, they are part of sacred tradition for us Catholics.
I think we even have a fertility goddess saint we can pray directly to.
IF one bows before, pray to the image, relies upon the image, etc...it's an idol.
Rome has approved a lot things that are non-scriptural.
One would have a hard time in Bible times explaining kneeling before a statue and praising the entity it represented in the unseen world, beseeching such for Heavenly help, and making offerings to them, and giving glory and titles and ascribing supernatural attributes to such which are never given in Scripture to created beings (except to false gods), including having the uniquely Divine power glory to hear and respond to virtually infinite numbers of prayers individually addressed to them.
Which manner of "adulation" would constitute worship in Scripture (Words for worship in the NT), yet Catholics imagine that by playing word games then they can avoid crossing the invisible line between mere "veneration" and worship.
In addition, prayer to created beings in Heaven (PTCBIH) certainly does not come from the Bible. Nowhere in Scripture do we see any believers engaging in prayer to created beings in Heaven or instructed to do so, despite the Spirit inspiring the recording of over 200 prayers by believers, and despite this being a most basic practice, and despite there always being plenty of created beings to pray to, and occasions for it since the Fall. Yet the only prayers or offerings in Scripture to anyone else in the spiritual world is by pagans, including to the only Queen of Heaven see therein. Who were as adamant as many Catholics in defending their blasphemous practice :
As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the Lord, we will not hearken unto thee. But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth, to burn incense unto the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, as we have done, we, and our fathers, our kings, and our princes... (Jeremiah 44:16-17)