The Idolatry of Self


In the old testament, amongst the forging of Judeo-Christianity and the values upon which it rests, the case is clear from the commencement: God will not be pleased if you kneel for anyone else. The Book of Exodus is quick to denounce all sorts of things in the Ten Commandments and ‘you shall have no other gods before me’ beats all other nine to Number 1. Believing in or placing anything higher than god is idolatry.

Since then many people have chosen to ignore this decree. There were already a lot of idols doing the rounds; subsequently, people have put many things before God, both animate and inanimate, real or imagined, physical and spiritual. It all seems to hinge around the act of worship, be that religious or otherwise. Humans discovered that, if pursued with fervour, idolatry can potentially fill up a whole day or indeed, a lifetime.

The Nordic religion, Paganism and Hinduism all do an excellent deity. Yes, the statuesque but consider also the religious artefact; even fragments of things are worth visiting and paying homage to if they resonate with your idol. For instance, when holidaying in Goa, you can pop in to see the right forearm of St Francis Xavier, displayed beautifully behind glass, which somehow became detached from the Saint in 1614.

But how does this all fare in the modern secular society that is the western world, in the 21st century? It transpires that idolatry is doing ever so well. Indeed, some would argue that it has become almost endemic. To understand this, we need to displace the idea of idolising whittled wooden figures. 


Pop and contemporary culture has delivered unto us many an idol. The list is almost endless but of note Hendrix, Elvis, Monroe, Warhol, Hepburn, Attenborough, Spencer and of course, Macaulay Culkin. With the birth of reality TV, it’s now super easy to become an idol, of sorts, even when you lose the contest, get evicted early or make a fool of yourself.

The noughties’ brought with it the unassailable rise of the public obsession with celebrity, and with social media, an even more compelling type of idol began to take centre stage. The idolatry of self, and with it, the monetisation of one’s own being. Where vision, magic, skills or talent are no longer required. 

Being an ‘influencer’ is now an aspirational career. To be one you need thousands, if not millions, of people to like pictures of you on one of your favourite Apps. Selfies (a self-portrait repeated, a lot), in a variety of contexts, make money and offer the taker a sense of self-worth. Companies will pay you to do this as long as you *<delete as necessary> eat, wear, drink, play, drive (etc) their brand.


But fame is a fickle game and idols, or influencers, come and go such as the unfortunate Cameron Dallas (pictured). He was ever so popular for no reason and then his parents, and law enforcement thought better of that. 

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