The Evangelical Universalist Forum

Worshipping Idols - Addiction

So, I’ve been studying the genetic basis for alcohol addictions and the evidence is inconclusive. Ed Welch has a Ph.D. in Psychology with a specialty in neuropsychology and gives an example of two genetic twins who had alcoholic parents and one grew up to be an alcoholic and the other didn’t. The fact of the matter is that addictions in general effect everybody. Everybody is addicted to their own way of thinking until something causes a change. Whatever the addiction - addiction is idol worship. This has affected me my whole life. I’ve had idols such as artists, writers, even musicians such as Metallica growing up. My walls had their pictures on them. I had a Metallica skateboard, shoes, drinking cups, stickers, key chains…I was in love with Metallica. They were an icon to me. But it’s like Paidion said in a previous post. We need to keep Christ at the center. When I don’t things get out of balance for me. It’s like drugs and alcohol. It can become an object of worship for me. My whole life use to center around that stuff. I was madly in love with drugs and alcohol. I went to the edge of the earth for it. But now I have a Higher Power (Christ) as my number one friend and icon. It’s like the Catholic mystic Richard Rohr says:

The beauty of the mystery of God seduces us to bring us into union and make Him our icon. When God is at the center all the planets orbit in their proper balance.

Other examples of idols people have are money, power, control etc. etc. Here’s how one female lady put it:

Narcotics Anonymous 12 Steps to Recovery

  1. We admitted that we were powerless over our addiction; that our lives had become unmanageable.

When you see the disasters your addiction has caused and acknowledge your real need for help, you face reality with humility and open the door for a changed life.

  1. We came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.

You learn that your life can turn from hopeless to hopeful - because there is a stronger Power outside of yourself that is able to piece your life back together and renew you. You have the personal choice to decide what or who that Higher Power is for you.

  1. We made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.

Your heart, mind and will take action by surrendering to this Higher Power. You trust that this Higher Power will guide your behaviors with better wisdom and care than you can do by yourself.

  1. We made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.

As you gently try to peel away the many layers of your being and better understand your depths, you allow yourself to experience a much fuller healing, restoration and freedom.

  1. We admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.

Now that you’ve more closely examined yourself, you gather your courage and confess - to yourself, to others and to your Higher Power - the darkness that you find inside yourself. By admitting what you’ve been previously hiding, you can better accept yourself and make changes in your relationships.

  1. We were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.

By working through your fears and uncertainties about becoming a better person and making the changes you need to make in your life, you prepare yourself to invite your Higher Power to change you.

  1. We humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.

As you ask your Higher Power to remove your character flaws, you also take actions that give your Higher Power greater ability to work changes into your life.

  1. We made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.

Here, you assess all the ways you could have possibly caused harm to others and also to yourself. You then make yourself ready to restore these relationships through both words and actions.

  1. We made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.

First, you need to face your fears and expectations in making these amends; you try to forgive anyone who needs your forgiveness and you sensitively evaluate where making amends would do more harm than good. You then take the risk of feeling vulnerable and make amends to these individuals.

  1. We continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.

You make it a habit to reassess yourself for any future wrongs you may commit as you strive towards better behavior, and you confess your wrongs as soon as you become aware of them.

  1. We sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.

In this step, you continue to increase your reliance on your Higher Power as your source of guidance and as your strength to walk according to this guidance.

  1. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to addicts, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.

By this point in the Narcotics Anonymous 12 steps, you have renewed yourself through your unique spiritual pathway, having found genuine hope in being able to stay clean and recover. You aim to both continue this pathway, yourself, and also share your journey and hope with others.

I saw tremendous idol worship in my family, when I was growing up, and beyond.

I grew up in a very lower middle class neighborhood, in the Bronx. Many of our parents were 1st or 2nd generation in this country. Our families went ‘check to check’ for the most part. Many lived in apartment buildings. And though most people would not have called it that, idol worship was rampant.
Smoking; drinking; some drugs, later more drugs; gambling; sex; belonging to certain parts of the neighborhood; the corner candy store hangout; your position on the baseball team, and on and on. The concept of God was often very sterile and contained. He was kept on a shelf, neatly and carefully, but not always integrated into people’s moment to moment lives.

I was different than many. My idols were different. I idolized family and relationships, such as friendship and romance. I was very fortunate to idolize them in a very Christian view, and not in a materialistic way…but, still, it was a very real and present danger to my relationship with God. I grew up in a very dysfunctional family, and connecting with people was something I had very little of, and understood even less. I kept myself amazingly busy and very, very well self-directed. I was a very good student. I had many incredibly advanced and complex hobbies. I loved God and always had great faith. I started volunteering regularly at the age of 10. But, I was extremely lonely and neglected and had no social skills.

Still, to this day, if anything will get me into trouble, it will be people. I love them too much.

But, that being said, it is important to note that anything at all, can become an idol. And none of them are any good to have. In God’s eyes, I would guess, they are really all the same. Anything that detracts from our primary relationship with God is not good for us, and needs to be put into its place.

I have learned this well, I believe, and the hard way. Nothing but God can hold the first place in our lives, even for a moment. It is so true that when God is at the center, all orbits correctly. It is a daily, often minute to minute relinquishing of self, and seeking, listening and praying to God. He made us to hear His voice, first and foremost…He is the Good Shepard and we are His sheep, after all. I think it important to remember, too, that God will give us all our needs. We don’t have to go looking for them.

Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4

And, the Spirit speaks to us; befriends us; explains things to us; reveals mysteries to us; calms our fears; shows us the right path, and on and on. When you are able to get a hold of this, even if the moments of it are fleeting, you are never the same again, and the struggle then begins to get easier, I believe. We are truly transformed, by the grace of the Almighty. It is amazing to watch.

Everyday, we must put on our full armor of God on, and be sure to secure it and keep it on. Dangers lurk everywhere. Idols arise where and when we least expect it.

At the present time, I am battling with the idol of iPhone6S. It connects me with people, you see.

I hope to win this one, very soon. :slight_smile:

D.

Hey Dandelion,

I’ve idolized friendship a little. Even my uncles because they were tough boxers. But I wasn’t tough growing up. I had few friends because I couldn’t communicate and relate to people that well. This is why I turned to alcohol. It gave me that liquid courage to talk. But it would backfire and I would spin out of control only to feel the shame and more fear. Over time the fears and shame got so intense that I had a psychotic break. But through a long process I’m able to look people in the eye and communicate now without drugs. But music, theology, art and poetry is my thing now. I tend to idolize those in that area. But not as much anymore. My relationship with God and other people at A.A. are much better today. I’m so glad you are doing much better and have come through a lot of your issues. And I agree that it’s a day at a time. I try to live in the now. With my past forgiven and largely healed and my future secure (because God is in control and holds it in His hands) I can live in the present moment. This lays the foundation for me for meditation and contemplation and to clear my mind of all bad images and bring me back to a childlike state. Anyway, sounds like God is really working in your life. Keep up the good work. :smiley:

Yes, St. Michael, I do amazingly well, especially considering my past.

God’s hand has always been on my life, and I can see it clearer and clearer, everyday. The following Psalm says it very well.

Psalm 27
Of David.

1 The Lord is my light and my salvation—
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—
of whom shall I be afraid?
2 When the wicked advance against me
to devour[a] me,
it is my enemies and my foes
who will stumble and fall.
3 Though an army besiege me,
my heart will not fear;
though war break out against me,
even then I will be confident.
4 One thing I ask from the Lord,
this only do I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,
to gaze on the beauty of the Lord
and to seek him in his temple.
5 For in the day of trouble
he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent
and set me high upon a rock.
6 Then my head will be exalted
above the enemies who surround me;
at his sacred tent I will sacrifice with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make music to the Lord.
7 Hear my voice when I call, Lord;
be merciful to me and answer me.
8 My heart says of you, “Seek his face!”
Your face, Lord, I will seek.
9 Do not hide your face from me,
do not turn your servant away in anger;
you have been my helper.
Do not reject me or forsake me,
God my Savior.
10 Though my father and mother forsake me,
the Lord will receive me.
11 Teach me your way, Lord;
lead me in a straight path
because of my oppressors.
12 Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes,
for false witnesses rise up against me,
spouting malicious accusations.
13 I remain confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the Lord
in the land of the living.
14 Wait for the Lord;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the Lord.

I am extremely grateful to God, for what He has done for me. Sometimes I say, I have clawed up the mountain, but the view was so worth it.

I appreciate my struggles, because without them, I would not be as close to God as I am now, I believe.

I am happy for you, as well. Be blessed to be a blessing!

D.

Thank you Dandelion. I love that scripture. It really is the beauty of the Lord that transforms. It does for me anyway. It hasn’t happened over night though. It’s a process. Here’s one of my favorite quotes by my favorite mystic:

This coupled with a hatred of sin helps me. Love the sinner and hate the sin. It’s like liver and onions. I hate liver and onions so I don’t eat it. If the hatred is strong enough I’m not going to ingest drugs and alcohol. That’s what works for me anyway. Moreover, it coincides with that scripture:

And I’m not perfect today but I’m a whole lot better than I use to be.

Jesus is my number one icon and idol that I’m in love with because He was for the mentally ill and outcast and poor. In fact He said whatever you do to them you do to Him.

So, I just wanted to sum this up. What we love the most is what we worship. For me it use to be alcohol. I was so in love with alcohol that my life revolved around it. It’s the worship of and idol. When Christ isn’t at the center I get out of balance. The idea is to fall in love with Christ who is love (agape). We see this in the Holy Eucharist. Drinking the blood of Christ is drinking the wine of His love. Hence, falling in love with love as we come into union with Christ. He becomes the number one icon that is worshipped and loved more than anything. When He’s at the center all planets orbit in their proper balance. It’s a crazy love. An obsession. It’s like how people worship their icon football players at a football game. They dance, sing, paint their bodies, wear the names of their favorite players. And even have their teams materials hanging on their wall. With Christ it’s an intimate relationship. We are united to Christ. When we extremely admire and fall in love with Christ the more we reflect Him. Christ was for showing love and compassion for the mentally ill, children, poor, outcast, alcoholics. Even the woman caught in adultery was shown compassion. Christ said let him who has no sin cast the first stone. Become drunk on the wine of love. In drinking His blood we come into union. Christ is love. So, even eating His flesh is an act of being in love with love.

Atonement

Blood drips from your veins
And sprinkles upon my soul
Washing away all the stains
I’m safe when I’m under the flow

A union is what I need
To be one in spirit with you
As you suffer and bleed
My heart begins to renew

Scream in sorrow and pain
As my mind begins to heal
Becoming one and the same
New life is what I feel

The bread of life for me
Your crushed body and blood I eat
As my eyes begin to see
Your soul is a lovely treat

As I bathe in your warm blood
And become one in spirit with you
I dance underneath the flood
For I’ve finally found a love that is true

To be Holy means to be set apart as special. We see this in how God set apart the Seventh Day and declared it holy. Jesus had a special love for the elect. This doesn’t mean all won’t eventually be saved but that He has a chosen people in this lifetime. Jesus came for sinners. He loved the mentally ill, outcasts, sick, alcoholics, children, and poor. He loved the ones the world just loves to hate.