[metmom]

Exodus 20:4-6 says nothing about worshiping other gods, but it does explicitly state that people are not to BOW DOWN to carved images.

Exodus 20:4-6 4 "You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, 6but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

I've seen plenty of Catholics bowing down before statues of Mary, Joseph and whoever else there was a statue of, lighting candles in front of them.

Obviously God knew the semantics games people would play and focused on the actions.

[Natural Law]

"Exodus 20:4-6 says nothing about worshiping other gods, but it does explicitly state that people are not to BOW DOWN to carved images."

No, it doesn't. It says to not bow down to any idols or graven images. The meaning is any object that itself is presumed to have some powers or properties. Iconoclasts have been perverting that verse for over 500 years.

[count-your-change]

One says I'm not worshiping (Greek proskuneo) but rather showing respect, obeisance (Greek proskuneo) and yet onlookers might well ask why the Hebrews refused to bow down before the Babylonian image set up and they were tossed into a furnace over. (Dan. Chapter 3)

Could they have not said it was only respect as bowing down before a superior was often done as Lot did to the two angels that came to him at Sodom?

Paul explained that how onlookers, especially our brothers, viewed our actions had to be taken into account.

To the Corinthian Christians Paul wrote about eating meat that been used for sacrifice to idols but then either eaten in a temple or sold later in a meat market. (1 Cor,. Chapters 8, 10)

Could our actions, EVEN IF PERMITTED, be a cause of spiritual damage to others? The question was the eating of meat but there is a principle involved beyond that question.

And it's not one I've seen mentioned overmuch.

[Quix]

Ahhhhhhhh, but Dear Christian Sister . . .

Perhaps ya just don’t understand . . .

“bowing down to them”

is NOT bowing down to them when the Magicsterical and the DAFFYNNITIONARY

INSIST OTHERWISE!

I mean . . . how could ALMIGHTY GOD

DARE to disagree with those prissy pristine perfect sources?

/sarc

[CynicalBear]

>>Obviously God knew the semantics games people would play and focused on the actions.<<

And Lord knows we get semantics and double speak from those who can’t prove their doctrine from scripture.