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"Aaron and the Israelites had much the same excuse for the golden calf."

Throughout the Old Testament God ordained or permitted the making of images that pointed symbolically toward salvation such as with the Nehushtan (bronze serpent), the ark of the covenant, and the cherubim. God Himself used images to reveal Himself and convey specific messages. This included Jesus as a Lamb, the Holy Spirit as a Dove, and God the Father as a Burning Bush. Catholic iconography expresses in images the same Gospel message that Scripture communicates by words. Image and word illuminate and compliment each other. Both are inspired by the Holy Spirit.

I want to emphasize your point here which I think is key to understanding:

Catholic iconography expresses in images the same Gospel message that Scripture communicates by words. Image and word illuminate and compliment each other.

The earliest images we have are from the Early Church from the catacombs of Rome. Here, again, is one from the Catacomb of Priscilla:

This is the earliest known depiction of Mother and Christ. In the same catacomb are Old and New Testament scenes, images of Jesus with a star over his shoulder - signifying Messiah, a scene of the last judgement, and the Annunciation.

This catacomb is mentioned in all ancient liturgical sources.

Christian art, including the Virgin Mary and Jesus, goes back to the beginning of the Church, integral to the liturgical growth and teaching of the Gospel.

In its rejection, and the rejection of monastic prayer and contemplative Christianity, we are left with..? Language and intellectual concepts, intellectual assent, believerism and so on. A vast reductionism of the early Church into conceptualization, rationalism and systematic logic for theology - a blind theology.

We might as well seek to eliminate sight and sound and touch and taste from our knowledge and experience of God.

Throughout the Old Testament God ordained or permitted the making of images that pointed symbolically toward salvation such as with the Nehushtan (bronze serpent),

Which of course Jesus referenced as a type of Christ..look in faith and be saved.. and now the rest of the story

That bronze serpent was taken with the people when they entered the land of Canaan, they turned it into an idol. Finally King Hezekiah finally had it destroyed destroyed it (2 Kings 18:4). here we can see that even something God used in a miracle..something that foreshadowed Christ can become a false god, an idol

the ark of the covenant, and the cherubim.

The ark was a type of Christ ... it was a replica of the ark in heaven.. and men were not to worship that or the tabernacle which housed God Himself

God Himself used images to reveal Himself and convey specific messages.

Indeed He did, He ordered them and directed their construction.. that is not true of the icons or idols in discussion here.

Catholic iconography expresses in images the same Gospel message that Scripture communicates by words.

Like???? Statues of the queen of heaven?

Image and word illuminate and compliment each other. Both are inspired by the Holy Spirit.

They may be spirit inspired , but I am not sure it is the Holy Spirit.. Satan loves to have man take their eyes off of Christ and all the while think they are honoring Him..