Calvary: Through the eyes of Mary
Idolatry and the idols we serve
Photo by Jose Luis Sanchez Pereyra on Unsplash
I have a wooden sign in my kitchen that proclaims, “as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord”. It’s a daily reminder to be cautious, attentive, and intentional about the actions of my day. It’s a reminder to avoid idols.
Idolatry, in its simplest definition, is anything or anyone in our life we have placed above God. One of the greatest mortal sins that we commit, many times without even knowing it, is idolatry. “You shall not have any gods before me. You shall not carve idols for yourselves in the shape of anything in the sky above or on the earth below or in the waters beneath the earth; you shall not bow down before them or worship them. For I, the Lord, your God, am a jealous God, inflicting punishment for their fathers’ wickedness on the children of those who hate me, down to the third and fourth generation.” (Exodus 20:3-5)
Satan fools us into thinking we do not worship idols because we do not have a ceramic Buddha in our home or do not have a golden calf in our kitchen. We may not have a wooden Greek god in our bedroom and do not say prayers or give sacrifices to ancient gods. However, when we place something or someone before the Lord then we are, essentially, bowing down to that god and making it our idol. Our careers quickly become idols, where we sacrifice attending Mass or prayer time at home for working extra hours for more money. We sacrifice reading Scripture and spending time with the Lord so we can attend an NFL game or spend the day boating on the lake. We do not even get through dinner without picking up a cellphone to check a text message or social media, yet, we say a 10 second blessing for the food and spend hours watching TV, on social media, or texting. We give God a 15-minute rosary and give Facebook two hours of scrolling. We talk for hours about the results of the college football game with our friends, but never mention Jesus to those we love. We toss in the $5 change in the collection basket at Mass that we received from dining out with friends and family the previous night, but we spend $300 on Amazon.
If we can spend time scrolling through Facebook, but cannot seem to find time to pray, then what is really our idol? If we go out of our way to make plans to spend time with our best friend, but neglect to find time to read Scripture and spend time in Adoration with our Lord, then who is really our god? If we spend 3-4 hours watching an NFL game on Sunday, but do not time to attend Mass, then what god are we really serving?
“If it does not please you to serve the Lord, decide today whom you will serve, the gods your fathers served beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose country you are dwelling. As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15)
Who do you truly serve? What is the idol in your life you need to smash?
About the Author
Amelia Monroe Carlson graduated from the University of North Alabama with a Bachelor’s Degree in journalism. Being raised as a Methodist during her early years, it was not until she entered college where she began to take her faith seriously. She was baptized as a Southern Baptist in Muscle Shoals, AL and began immediately serving in international missions and in the church.
During college, she became the Co-founder of an International Ministry, where she spent time traveling and speaking to church groups and in large conferences. She authored a Bible study and traveled abroad on mission work. She sat on the Mid-South Interfaith Conferences in Mississippi, where she defended the faith and discussed beliefs with leaders of various religions.
After a business trip to Washington D.C., where she was introduced to a former Baptist who converted to the Catholic Church, she was placed on a journey to enter into the Catholic Church.
Amelia is a military wife and currently residents with her husband and daughter in Tennessee. She is a nine time award winning journalist, receiving press awards for various categories including investigative journalism, best news coverage, and best single feature. It is her desire to help Catholics, particularly Cradle Catholics, see the beauty in their faith which converts see and appreciate the fullness of truth which the Church has held and guarded throughout history. It is her desire all Catholics fall as much in love with Jesus as she is, and love the Church to a greater capacity than they could imagine.
Amelia taught PRE for 4-6 grade at St. Mary Catholic Church in Bolivar, Tennessee from 2014-2016. She served as Youth Director at St. Philip the Apostle Catholic Church in Somerville, Tennessee in 2017-2018. She now teaches 7th grade (1st year Confirmation) PRE class at St. Philip. She's also a writer and frequent podcast guest on Our Warpath.
She has a strong devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe, St. Francis de Sales, St. Padre Pio and St. Maximilian Kolbe.
To contact Amelia for speaking inquiries at conferences, retreats, or parishes contact her via social media on Facebook (Amelia Monroe Carlson), Twitter (@2_catholic ) or send a text to: (731)518-6923.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ameliamcarlson
Twitter: @2_catholic (Catholic ministry account)
Twitter personal account: @ameliamcarlson
