Idolatry in Modern Times

Hindus with their slew of many false gods are hardly the only idolaters in the world. The western world, such as America, is full of idolatry, but it is simply hidden in another form. Keeping in mind the definitions of idolatry from Webster's Dictionary on the first idolatry page, we can see that worship of celebrities is idolatry because it is the worship of men and women - and the media knows this. The show "American Idol" has the word right in the title, and the media uses buzzwords like "idol" and "icon" when speaking of famous celebrities.

Just look at the massive amounts of worship around sports stars such as Michael Jordan:

How many idolize a mere man like movie star Keanu Reeves for his role in film series such as "John Wick" and "The Matrix":

There is a sick amount of obsession with singers such as Ariana Grande and her influence on the youth as young girls worship her:

Then there is the way many place men as their saviours in politics, such as Ronald Reagan, who is an idol from beyond the grave:

Alongside these four idols above comes billions of dollars worth of merchandise. Yes, even Ronald Reagan, a former president, has merchandise themed around him and companies and the people behind them get rich off of them. We can see this same behavior in the Bible when silversmiths making shrines to the false goddess Diana were angry about Paul preaching against her and other gods as false idols:

"For a certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith, which made silver shrines for Diana, brought no small gain unto the craftsmen;

Whom he called together with the workmen of like occupation, and said, Sirs, ye know that by this craft we have our wealth.

Moreover ye see and hear, that not alone at Ephesus, but almost throughout all Asia, this Paul hath persuaded and turned away much people, saying that they be no gods, which are made with hands:

So that not only this our craft is in danger to be set at nought; but also that the temple of the great goddess Diana should be despised, and her magnificence should be destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worshippeth."

Acts 19:24-27

It is undeniable that just as the silversmith Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen 2000 years ago had a business interest in promoting mass idol worship, so do the merchandising companies of today as they slap together hundreds of thousands of pairs of Jordans:

Or as they print off shirt after shirt glamorizing a violent character that Keanu Reeves played:

Or as they mix bottles of perfume and put Ariana Grande's name on them:

Or as they mold little plastic figurines of a political figure worshiped as if he was a god like Ronald Reagan: