The False Idols Of Adulthood
In probably 2019 or so, my pastor did a sermon series on “false idols.” It was good enough that I regularly wish he would bring it back. Now, I understand an increasing amount of people are not religious — we even have a term for it now, “de-churching.”
So, this whole thing might fall on deaf ears. It’s hard to say that the “only thing” you should worship is some guy (woman) in the sky who we don’t have full proof of, and I get it. But even if you’re not religious, there are any number of false idols that people worship in adulthood, or at least American adulthood, and I’m not sure any of said idols are making us better people. Let’s list a few.
Money
This seems like the obvious one. Now, you need to care about money and make decisions around it, for sure. Life is expensive. Inflation is real. Grocery bills are way up since even 2019. But ideally would you center your life around money? No.
Work
Some people absolutely worship work, and a lot of those people are very conventionally-successful. However, millions more view work as essentially a necessary means to an end and nothing more or less than that. Need work for money, need work and money to live. Rinse and repeat. It’s not always pleasant, but we haven’t figured out a better system. When you deify work or put your entire soul into work, you’ve kinda lost the plot.
Socials and Insta
All social media is generally useless. Yes, I am on some platforms. I post some writing stuff to try and get attention. I almost never scroll and look at other people’s stuff, and when I do, I’m constantly disappointed by how awful and attention-seeking/virtue-signaling it is. Could you say the same about me? Absolutely. But it’s all a false idol, and the “highlight reel” vs. “behind the scenes” aspect triggers a lot of depression and anxiety in people, especially in the years where you’re ‘supposed’ to be doing something, i.e. making money, having kids, buying homes, et al.
Pornography
Just heard the other day that a college I used to do some work with is instituting a support group for college-aged guys who feel addicted to porn. Remember when the main association we had for “college-aged” and “guys” was “got laid a bunch?” Now I guess that’s been inverted, at least in some cases. Porn is absolutely a false idol of what intimate relationships should look like.
Parenting
I would still classify parenting as the strongest brand in the world, and by far the biggest source of conversation and context for about three or four decades for most people, but I also think a lot of people worship at the altar of being a parent — “It’s become akin to an Olympic sport,” one older mom recently told me — and (shhh) aren’t actually good at being parents or developing their kids. In that way, it can become a false idol.
How busy you are
This one is tied to work, but a lot of people worship at the “Temple Of Busy” in terms of social activities as well — and it dooms friendships, relationships, catch-ups, spontaneous interactions, etc. I do think perception of busy is tied to perception of inflated social status and connection, so a lot of people worship how deep their calendar slate is, as opposed to just, like, taking a walk with their friend and BS’ing.
Trauma and victimhood
Some people do idolize this well, yes. I’ve been there myself a few times, I’m sure.
Convenience
I think this one ultimately replaced “community,” and the trade of “community” for “convenience” is something we’ve been dealing with ever since.
What other false idols of adulthood did I miss?