The interesting thing is the similarities with Catholic/Orthodox thought to non-Christian religions
The “worshipping” at the Buddha image is quite a different matter. Buddhists revere the image of the Buddha as a gesture to the greatest, wisest, most benevolent, compassionate and holy man who has ever lived in this world. It is a historical fact that this great man actually lived in this world and has done a great service to mankind. The worship of the Buddha really means paying homage, veneration and devotion to Him and what He represents, and not to the stone or metal figure.
Sikhs believe in one god. They believe their “holy book” which they call “Guru Granth Sahib”, and treat as a living guru or teacher, is the “Word of God.” They claim that one of the distinctive features of their religion is that they have no idols or images in their temples (distinguishing themselves from their Hindu neighbors in India).
Their “holy book” has this, among other, strong words against idol worship:
“The Hindus have forgotten the Primal Lord; they are going the wrong way. As Naarad instructed them, they are worshipping idols. They are blind and mute, the blindest of the blind. The ignorant fools pick up stones and worship them. But when those stones themselves sink, who will carry you across?”3
However, they bow to and offer food to their “holy book.” They also use a fan to keep the flies off of this book and put it to bed at night. During celebrations, they parade this book around on a large platform for everyone to see.
However, this is an example of what Sikhs say in response to the accusation that they are worshiping an idol:
As for the argument that bowing to Sri Guru Granth Sahib jee is idol worship, I would ask, what is idol worship? Bowing to a stone that can teach nothing is idol worship. A Sikh prostrates to God alone. Satguru Sri Granth Sahib jee is the ‘Spoken revealed Word’ of God.
Muslims believe in one god. They believe all idols are evil and that worship of anything other than the “one true god” is evil. However, all Muslims pray facing the Kaaba, an ancient stone shrine in Mecca. When they go on their Pilgrimage to Mecca, they have to walk seven times around this shrine. During that time, they often touch and kiss the shrine and especially an ancient black stone embedded in the corner of the building.
Here is an example of how Muslims respond to the accusation that they are worshiping and idol for bowing down and kissing a black stone:
In Islam, every single act of worship must be directed to God alone, and the greatest sin in Islam is to direct even the tiniest part of worship to other than God. It is not allowed for a Muslim to have any kind of intermediary with God in worship, whether a living being, or an inanimate object. Muslims pray to Allah – Almighty God – alone, and they do not take things either as direct objects of worship, or indirect objects of worship through which God’s help is sought.
But in Hinduism, idols (murti) are worshipped as reminders of God. For example, every year, in Mumbai, Hindus bring clay images of Lord Ganesha to their homes, and worship him for a day or two before immersing the image in the sea. The ritual includes veneration (aradhana) which involves welcoming the divine, bathing him, offering him food, clothes, perfumes, lamps, incense, and finally words of praise. Here, the idol is seen as a vehicle — a physical, tangible carrier — of God.
The author is currently doing mission work in Haiti and I can email the full article if you are interested.
