TRUE--- and that IS interesting. The spiritual heirs of Luther, Calvin, Waldo and Wycliffe abandoned the Biblical customs and practices of bowing before kinsmen; priests, prophets, kings; holy places (like Jerusalem) and holy objects (like the Ark of the Covenant) #65 ---( worth a look). Some have strayed so far that they can't even distinguish between bowing and adoration anymore. The abandonment of the Biblical language of gesture is an immense cultural loss.
Incidentally, we don't pray "to" pictures to intercede. That would be silly silly: art objects don't intercede. We believe the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much; and of course, it doesn't stop availing much if that righteous person has passed into the life to come, where they are with the Triune God forever.
"God did say that making these idols/images would draw people to worship before them.....which was what the pagans did."
TRUE--- and the making of idols will do just that, because that is what idols are intended for. But that's not what statues, bas-reliefs, icons, painting, stained glass, tapestries, banners, frescoes, mosaics and murals are for That's why these are not forbidden; specifically, idols are forbidden.
"Additionally, regardless of what denomination these statues are affiliated with..I’ve never known any of them to urge praying or requesting it’s membership to ask prayer of these departed people to pray for them."
TRUE, natch. But I put those pictures there for confirm the fact that it's not the making of statues/images that is forbidden. It's not even the honor given to the great men of the Reformation that is forbidden. What's forbidden is: idols.
Hold this thought.
Revelation 20:11-12
Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.
..."You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God"....Ex. 20:5
...."Thou shalt not BOW DOWN down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their works: but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and quite break down their images."....Ex.23:24
Really?
That is not the only image or icon which is widely regarded to have "powers" -- and if not powers intrinsic to the object itself, then the object be as *special portal* to the entity or heavenly being which the image is understood to represent.
You said -- what is forbidden is idols, with the "veneration" of them (and what they represent) being often so nearly indistinguishable from worship, that even many (Roman) Catholics cannot honestly say of their fellows that idolatry of sorts is not taking place, even though they themselves may well be stopping short of that.
For those whom do stop short --- if they were ever in the neighborhood of the statuary which represents Waldo, Wycliffe, Calvin & Luther, give then a looking over -- and than Thank God for those men's efforts to bring sanity, and restraint away from excesses which human beings are prone towards...like praying to the Virgin of Guadalupe image (for example -- for do any doubt that they would oppose such things?).
Those men are due thanks to God for their having once lived among us, for they all had their own positive effects, in their own times, even if none of them be themselves also without their own limitations, and flaws also -- which must be seen for they are, not for what the RCC found embarrassing to it's own practices and manner of speaking/describing the things of God.