Well yes - it is mentioned many times in the Bible as a false idol. That is even mentioned in the article.
Not sure what you mean by “up to them” - it is certainly not Christian doctrine.
Yeah, that's how you know most people in the Hebrew world were involved in the practice. No point in telling people to not do something they are already not doing. My point is that people with a religious axe to grind often deliberately misrepresent what most Hebrew people were doing at the time.
What the pastor is saying is accurate.