Is It Ok to Bow to Statues of Mary?

Pastor Ross: We’ve got Courtney who is calling from Florida listening to WACX. Courtney welcome to the program.

Courtney: Hello.

Pastor Doug: Hi and your question tonight?

Courtney: My question is Exodus 20 verse 4. This says, “Thou shall not make any graven image or likeness of anything that in the heaven above or of the earth or that is in the water or on the earth.” My point is why do some people why do some people before they go into church bow down to the Virgin Mary?

Pastor Doug: Well your question about the Bible verse Exodus 20 is one of the Ten Commandments. And it’s dealing with what they call idolatry. And it first of all, some people have confused this verse to mean, that if you have photograph of your grandma in your pocket that it is an image. Well if you are putting that photograph up on a mantle and burning a candle and praying to it, it probably is idolatry. But there is nothing wrong with having a facsimile of something, a pretty picture of a flower or you know your kid’s graduation picture. The issue is making an image and then the next verse 5: part of the commandment says, “Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them.”

So People are praying to statues of Jesus or Mary or you know any of the supposed saints, now that is idolatry according to the Bible. We’re not supposed to pray to statues.

Courtney: I agree.

Pastor Doug: We’re to pray to the living God. And it is one of the areas where I think the dear Christians have compromised. Now if you are in Rome and some parts of the world, they pray to statues of Mary or Jesus or the saints. You go to some of the Russian or Greek Orthodox churches and they will have icons or paintings that they carry up their streets during their festivals and they pray to and burn candles before, but either one is it can be idolatry when we pray to any other kind of other god. Whether it is a golden calf which is certainly forbidden, or if it is a golden Jesus, we’re not supposed to pray to these.

Pastor Ross: You know we have a book dealing with this subject it is called “Baptized Paganism” it talks a little bit about how all of these symbols and images connect into Christendom. We’d be happy you send that to you Courtney if you’ll call our resource line it is 1-800-835-6747 and for anyone listening you can ask for “Baptized Paganism”. It’ll give you a lot of good historical information and also the Scriptures that point out the way God would want us to worship Him.