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I have a capacity to appreciate such as beautiful art.

I have a . . . fierce aversion

to consider any image sort of thing re God or anything close to God in any sort of spiritual/religious way.

I take the prohibitions against such in Scripture fiercely literally and wholesale as statements of God's sentiments about such and seek to abide well on God's side of that line . . . exceedingly, no doubt, on God's side of that line.

I have a simple cross. I don't wear it often. I never consider nor relate to it as any sort of focus of my spiritual meditations. It is merely a statement of who I am--a Christian.

I believe that God said what He meant and meant what He said on the issue of images and that rationalizations to the contrary are greatly spiritually hazardous.

As a human being and as a psychologist I'm keenly aware of humans' need and tendency to have something tangible to focus worship on. God proscribed that in the strongest terms repeatedly in Scripture. I don't want to stammer around, when facing Him in eternity, with only the weak claim that I was too dense to understand.

I want to show Him in thought and deed that I received His commandments and responded to them as a loving son to a loving Father faithfully and thoroughly and WELL, FAR ON HIS SIDE OF THAT LINE.

I'm also keenly aware that probably SOMEWHAT comparable proportions of Protesty's are as guilty of idolatry as any RC's or Orthy's. Though I also suspect that the percentages are likely somewhat to significantly less on the Protesty side since such is proscribed overtly and taught against vs being covertly sanctioned and encouraged by many overt doublt talk sorts of things.

At least Protesty's worshipping their TV's, cars, homes, hobbies, spouses, children, jobs . . . are NOT fooling themselves about such REALLY representing God Almighty in tangible form.

At least I haven't heard of any such writing veneration poetry to their DIRECT-TV service or plasma screens.

At the same token, I don't want to sit in any shred of haughty judgment of anyone about anything.

We are called to walk in the light we have been given. But this issue is well lit in Scripture, imho. And Traditions of men NEVER trump Scripture in my theology and prayerfully in my practice.

If I left something out, please ask again.

Thanks for the honor of your question.