[Mrs. Don-o]

Hey, Catholics don't pray to statues anymore--- now we pray to felt banners...

(Just kidding, my dear metmom!)

Actually, it's fairly easy to find candles, kneeling, etc., at the Nativity scenes all over the Protestant world at Christmas

And here's everybody kneeling at a Nativity Scene devotion sponsored by Campus Crusade members in Children's Ministry (I don't know if you can see it, but there's the Star of Bethlehem):

As for praying to statues, nobody does that. I certainly never thought I was "praying to" some object, even as a 7-year-old. Statues are just wood, plaster --- no ears, y'know!

But here's a veteran praying on Memorial Day. Do you think he's committing idolatry?

Of course not. No reasonable person thinks that. He's praying to God --- I feel fairly confident of that.

[CynicalBear]

Did anyone say idolatry is restricted to the Catholic Church? Idolatry is idolatry regardless of who does it. It’s the Catholic Church that promotes it.

[metmom]

And here's everybody kneeling at a Nativity Scene devotion sponsored by Campus Crusade members in Children's Ministry (I don't know if you can see it, but there's the Star of Bethlehem):

I see a bunch of kids sitting cross legged.....

But here's a veteran praying on Memorial Day. Do you think he's committing idolatry? Of course not. No reasonable person thinks that. He's praying to God --- I feel fairly confident of that.

Of course that's what anyone would conclude.

But he is not kneeling and bowing his head before a statue.

The second commandment says not to BOW DOWN before the images. Bowing is bowing.

Anyone can argue till the cows come home that what it is is not worship, but God circumvents that by making it clear that it's BOWING we are not to do.

And bowing is bowing.