Part 3: Images And Their Dynamic
By Ed Tarkowski

An image or statue is not a living thing: it has no soul, no spirit, no living body. Rather, it's part of nature, lifeless and dead. St. Paul wrote,

1 Cor 10:19 What say I then? that the idol is any thing,. . . 1 Cor 8:4 . . . . we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one.

The prophet Jeremiah gave us this colorful description of the lifelessness of idols:

Jeremiah 10:2 Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them. 3 For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the ax. 4 They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not. 5 They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good.


An image in itself can do nothing. Left alone, it will deteriorate, rust, rot or chip. If it falls, it remains on the ground until someone picks it up and replaces it in an upright position. Yet this is the kind of image God forbids us to make, which causes Him to assert: ". . . for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God (Exodus 20:5) . . . . Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of male or female" (Deuteronomy 4:16). But why would the Creator of heaven and earth care one way or another about lifeless, helpless statues like these? Is God being petty? Are they a threat to Him? Or, does He know something we don't.

This is what God knows: When we pray long enough and hard enough to a lifeless statue, IT MIGHT BEGIN TO SHOW SIGNS OF LIFE AND ANSWER BACK! How can this be? There would have to be a spirit or a living personality connected with the statue, enabling it to "do" anything or to communicate in any way. Because of this, it's crucial that we understand that such a spirit or personality could not be of God because He forbade making them in the first place. St. Thomas Aquinas wrote about images that manifest life in his Summa Theoloica:

"The other cause of idolatry was competitive, and this was on the part of the demons, who offered themselves to be worshiped by men, by giving answers in the idols, and doing things which to men seemed marvelous. Hence it is written (Ps. XCV 5): All the gods of the Gentiles are devils."(1)

In his book, Biblical demonology, Merrill F. Unger comments on this same verse of Scripture:

"'For all the gods of the people are idols ('ellim, LXX daimonia), but Jehovah made the heavens" (Ps. 96:5; XX 95:5). This is the classic passage identifying demons with idols, and suggesting demonism as the dynamic of idolatry. Hebrew 'ellim, the plural of the adjective meaning 'of nought, empty, vain,' shows plainly the idols are 'mere nothing,' non-realities. The demons behind them are the real existences"(2)

Scripture clearly teaches that statues themselves are lifeless, and points out that any manifestation of life in a statue IS of demonic origin.

Although the Catholic Church continually claims that images are simply a tool to honor Jesus' mother and the saints, we must take notice of the fact that there are signs following statues of Mary that call for a discernment of the dynamic causing these signs and wonders. Such contact with "the saints" is the fourth step of man's descent into idolatry, following (1) making the image, (2) venerating it, and (3) petitioning "the saint" which it represents. The beginning of control over the devotee begins to take hold in this fourth step.

Unger shows the ancient Hebrews acknowledged the demonic power behind these images. Concerning the Hebrew word translated "demons," he writes:

"The underlying significance [of the word] is no doubt 'idols,' properly, 'lords,' since THE HEBREWS VERY EARLY REGARDED IDOLATROUS IMAGES AS MERE VISIBLE SYMBOLS OF INVISIBLE DEMONS, who let themselves be worshiped by men (Ps. 96:5; LXX 95:5; . . . . 1 Cor. 10:20; caps mine). Therefore, in the Song of Moses, the Israelites who lapsed into idolatry are said to have 'sacrificed unto demons (shedhim), which were not God (or gods), to gods that they knew not' (Deut. 32:17).

"It is clear that the shedhim are not only identified with idolatrous images, who are denied all reality as gods, but at the same time are separated from them, as being real spiritual existences behind them, energizing their worship. The same double aspect is to be noted in the passage in the Psalms, where, falling again into idolatry, the Israelites are said to have 'sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto demons (daimonia, Shedhim) . . . . unto the idols of Canaan' (Ps. 106:7-38). The 'idols of Canaan' are the inanimate idolatrous representatives, the visible means of deception. The 'demon' (shedhim) are the real spiritual entities inspiring the perverted worship."(3)

The concept of absolute spiritual ignorance in the ancient idolaters cannot be affirmed by Scripture. Therefore, arguments for Christian veneration of images based on this concept are invalid.

In another vein, if the definition of idolatry is based on the conflicting intention of venerators and idolaters, and not on the image themselves, then who is to decide what sort of image is an idol? The authors of "Mariology" thought they knew:

"An idol . . . is the representation of a false god, while a holy image in the Christian sense is the pictorial representation of the true God or of a genuine Saint."(4)

Based only on our knowledge of history, this definition is logical, because idols of pagan nations are easily recognized as false gods. Some were multi-headed, others were part animal or part bird, and many figures were pictured with snakes. Not all were ugly, though; some of the ancient images were depictions of handsome gods and beautiful goddesses. But pagan idols are identifiable because EACH WAS MADE TO REPRESENT A DEITY. No one thought to make images of the deities followers (as in Catholicism). Because of the usual picture of idols aroused in our minds by the phrase "false gods" or "graven images," we have made for ourselves a false security. For years, I believed the word "graven" meant ugly or grotesque, but it simply means "a carved image," as in Leviticus 26:1:

Lev 26:1 Ye shall make you no idols nor graven image, neither rear you up a standing image, neither shall ye set up any image of stone in your land, to bow down unto it: for I am the LORD your God.

Strong' s Concordance defines it as:

GRAVEN: 6459. pecel, peh'-sel; from H6458; an idol:--carved (graven) image.

GRAVEN ROOT: 6458. pacal, paw-sal'; a prim. root; to carve, whether wood or stone:--grave, hew.

Some have also made some wrong conclusions. Some in the Church say that the alleged powers of the ancient deities were non-existent, and that the idol-worship was merely a superstitious practice. Others, who believe the Scriptural references to ungodly supernatural phenomena, have concluded that this power has somehow dissipated and is no longer a consideration. But, as St. Thomas Acquinas pointed out, the power behind the idols was and is demonic. This is the crux of the matter. Demons don't just fade away, nor do they die. We don't know exactly what they've been doing all these years, but according to Peter they are still around searching for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8). In our urge to impress upon modern man the truth that Christianity is reasonable and logical, we have at times neglected the supernatural essence. But Scriptural teaching concerning the spiritual world is still valid, because evil spirits still exist and are still active. When the Church began to base beliefs on historical fact and human understanding instead of on the written word of God, our position became weak. The letter to the Hebrews tells us, "For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, . . . and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart" (Hebrews 4:12). If our hearts are not set on God as revealed in His word, we can only fall into speculations which hinder the truth, leading to darkened hearts and deep deceptions. The word of God is God's light in our hearts. But when our hearts are weakened and darkened by the absence of God's word, we naturally turn to the creature:

Romans 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; 19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath showed it unto them. 20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: 21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, 23 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.


On the left: Athena of Greece. On the right, Mary, the Mother of Mankind.

What does this have to do with statues of Mary and the other saints? Because the ancient idols and today's "Christian images" are lifeless things no matter what side of the fence of good and evil we place them on. If you have a dried log and fashion an image of Mary or a statue of Pharaoh, there is no difference between them in their basic element; they are both lifeless. But the demonic power behind the idols of old, the power that caused their worshipers to continue worshiping, is still present on the earth. Evil spirits, being liars like their leader, have no qualms about counterfeiting a work of God. And they have no preference as to how anyone views the image they haunt. To a demon, a lifeless statue of Athena is the same as a lifeless statue of Mary (see photos above). This is a horrifying statement to some; nonetheless, it is true. There's no reason to believe a demon would avoid an image of Mary out of respect, and certainly God offers no protection, because the image was made in disobedience to His word. The demon working through it is one of the main reasons He forbade it, because thinking a statue of Mary is an holy image rather than an idol, the venerator would be placing himself under the influence of the spirit masquerading as the person the image represents. Once deceived, a "new" Jesus and another message can easily be delivered to the venerator.

Returning to the concept that idolatry lies in the intention of the worshiper, we can see that intention alone means little to God and less to the evil spirits. God wants obedience, which is based on knowledge of His word and walking by faith in the truth of that word, not by the things we see. Evil spirits, on the other hand, wallow in the opportunities opened to them by the spiritual naivete of those who don't know, or believe, Scripture.
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Footnotes:

(1) The "Summa" Theologica" of St. Thomas Acquinas, Part II, lit. Trans. By fathers of the English Dominican Province (London: Burns Oates & Washbourne Ltd., n.d.), p. 189.

(2) Merrill F. Unger, Biblical Demonology: A Study of the Spiritual Forces Behind the Present World Unrest (Wheaton, IL: Scripture Press Publications, 1952), pp. 60-61.

(3) Unger, Biblical Demonlogy, pp. 59-60. I added emphasis from the words "the Hebrews" to "invisible demons."

(4) Pohl, Mariology, p. 162.

-End of Part 3.