---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Ultimately all idolatry is worship of the…"
description: "\"Ultimately all idolatry is worship of the self projected and objectified: all idolization is self-idolization.\" — Will Herberg"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/will-herberg-65017_identity_ultimately-all-idolatry-is-worship-of-th_1583200.jpg"
---

#  Ultimately all idolatry is worship of the self projected…

![“Ultimately all idolatry is worship of the self projected and objectified: all idolization is self-idolization.” quote by Will Herberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/will-herberg-65017_identity_ultimately-all-idolatry-is-worship-of-th_1583200.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/will-herberg-65017_identity_ultimately-all-idolatry-is-worship-of-th_1583200.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/will-herberg-65017_identity_ultimately-all-idolatry-is-worship-of-th_1583200.jpg)

> “Ultimately all idolatry is worship of the self projected and objectified: all idolization is self-idolization.”

[Will Herberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-herberg/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Worship of any external object is ultimately worship of oneself; all idolization reflects self‑idolatry.

**In simple terms:** Idolizing anything is self‑worship.

Key Takeaway

Reflect on what you truly value.

Themes

philosophy self spirituality

Mood

thoughtful critical

Type

theoretical reflective

When to use this quote

- religious practice
- consumer culture
- political symbolism

Key Concepts

Existentialism psychology of worship

Questions to Reflect On

- What modern “idols” might you be worshipping?
- How can you shift focus from self‑centered worship?

A Different Perspective

Self‑idolatry can be hard to recognize in everyday life.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identity/) [Idolatry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idolatry/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Worship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worship/)

## Related quotes

> [... we need to interrogate "reverence," for idolization can be another way one is objectified and not really taken seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bell-hooks/we-need-to-interrogate-reverence-for-idolization-can-be-another-way/)

[Bell Hooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bell-hooks/)

> [“I don’t even believe that Jesus Christ himself was perfect. To be human IS TO BE imperfect. Ultimately, the difference between an asshole or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-bravandt/i-don-t-even-believe-that-jesus-christ-himself-was-perfect-to-be/)

[Deborah Bravandt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-bravandt/)

> [“We have faces of notable figures printed on every currency in the world today. Isn’t that some form of idol worshipping?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soroosh-shahrivar/we-have-faces-of-notable-figures-printed-on-every-currency-in-the/)

[Soroosh Shahrivar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soroosh-shahrivar/)

> [Being an artist and having a following can be a very scary thing because idolization makes you question your inner role in the universe.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/halsey/being-an-artist-and-having-a-following-can-be-a-very-scary-thing/)

[Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/halsey/)

> [“The reality is, when someone knows the truth, knows the will of God, knows what God has spoken , and yet pushes back and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bevere/the-reality-is-when-someone-knows-the-truth-knows-the-will-of-god/)

[John Bevere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bevere/)

> [“‎A careful reading of the Old and New Testaments shows that idolatry is nothing like the crude picture that springs to mind of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-keyes/a-careful-reading-of-the-old-and-new-testaments-shows-that-idolatry/)

Richard Keyes

> [“Idolatry is not the use of images, but confusing them with what they represent, and in this respect mental images and lofty abstractions can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-wilson-watts/idolatry-is-not-the-use-of-images-but-confusing-them-with-what-they/)

[Alan Wilson Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-wilson-watts/)

> [Saint Augustine defined idolatry as worshiping what should be used or using what should be worshiped](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-s-smith/saint-augustine-defined-idolatry-as-worshiping-what-should-be-used-or/)

[Colin S. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-s-smith/)

> [The Human heart is an idol factory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-calvin/the-human-heart-is-an-idol-factory/)

[John Calvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-calvin/)

> [“Idolatry begins with a false separation of gift and giver. Rather than a momentary comparison for the sake of testing our affections, idolatry is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-rigney/idolatry-begins-with-a-false-separation-of-gift-and-giver-rather-than/)

[Joe Rigney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-rigney/)

> [Orthodoxy is idolatry if it means holding the 'correct opinions about God' - 'fundamentalism' is the most extreme and salient example of such idolatry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-caputo/orthodoxy-is-idolatry-if-it-means-holding-the-correct-opinions-about/)

[John D. Caputo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-caputo/)

> [Idolatry is permissible in Hinduism when it sub serves an ideal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/idolatry-is-permissible-in-hinduism-when-it-sub-serves-an-ideal/)

[Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/)

> [“The essence of idolatry is the entertainment of thoughts about God that are unworthy of Him. It begins in the mind and may be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-w-tozer/the-essence-of-idolatry-is-the-entertainment-of-thoughts-about-god/)

[A.W. Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-w-tozer/)

> [“Idolatry isn’t just one of many sins; rather it’s the one great sin that all others come from. So if you start scratching at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyle-idleman/idolatry-isn-t-just-one-of-many-sins-rather-it-s-the-one-great-sin/)

[Kyle Idleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyle-idleman/)

> [Whatever a man seeks, honors, or exalts more than God is the god of his idolatry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bernard-ullathorne/whatever-a-man-seeks-honors-or-exalts-more-than-god-is-the-god-of-his/)

[William Bernard Ullathorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bernard-ullathorne/)

## More by Will Herberg

> [Modern society has not rid itself of religion, as it fondly believes; it has merely replaced the historical religions by a host of idolatrous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-herberg/modern-society-has-not-rid-itself-of-religion-as-it-fondly-believes/)

[Will Herberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-herberg/)

> [Man is homo religiosus, by 'nature' religious: as much as he needs food to eat or air to breathe, he needs a faith for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-herberg/man-is-homo-religiosus-by-nature-religious-as-much-as-he-needs-food/)

[Will Herberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-herberg/)

> [America seems to be at once the most religious and the most secular of all nations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-herberg/america-seems-to-be-at-once-the-most-religious-and-the-most-secular/)

[Will Herberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-herberg/)

> [“The attempt made in recent decades by secularist thinkers to disengage the moral principles of western civilization from their scripturally based religious context, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-herberg/the-attempt-made-in-recent-decades-by-secularist-thinkers-to/)

[Will Herberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-herberg/)

[Explore all 5 Will Herberg quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-herberg/)

## More Identity quotes

> [I don't doubt that straight white men have identity issues and identity complexes and struggle with defining themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/i-don-t-doubt-that-straight-white-men-have-identity-issues-and/)

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

> [In the hearing world, I'm constantly having to lip-read and trying to understand what's going on. Sign language is so beautiful. It gives you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-ayling-ellis/in-the-hearing-world-i-m-constantly-having-to-lip-read-and-trying-to/)

[Rose Ayling-Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-ayling-ellis/)

> [I think the next 50 years are going to present the human race with challenges that so far exceed the limitations of geopolitical boundaries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zachary-quinto/i-think-the-next-50-years-are-going-to-present-the-human-race-with/)

[Zachary Quinto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zachary-quinto/)

> [You have expressive nationalism, I mean very identity driven, which shaped each other a lot of that in the Middle East.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/subrahmanyam-jaishankar/you-have-expressive-nationalism-i-mean-very-identity-driven-which/)

[Subrahmanyam Jaishankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/subrahmanyam-jaishankar/)

> [Family over friends, because real friends are family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/family-over-friends-because-real-friends-are-family/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I think everybody, or the great majority of human beings, have this aspiration to become other: to live a different identity, at least for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/i-think-everybody-or-the-great-majority-of-human-beings-have-this/)

[Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/)

> [The language we share is at the core of our identity as citizens, and our ticket to full participation in American political life. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-i-hayakawa/the-language-we-share-is-at-the-core-of-our-identity-as-citizens-and/)

[S. I. Hayakawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-i-hayakawa/)

> [Tell me how much a nation knows about its own language, and I will tell you how much that nation knows about its own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ciardi/tell-me-how-much-a-nation-knows-about-its-own-language-and-i-will/)

[John Ciardi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ciardi/)

> [I think that most of us, anyway, read these stories that we know are not "true" because we're hungry for another kind of truth:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/i-think-that-most-of-us-anyway-read-these-stories-that-we-know-are/)

[Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/)

> [“In the worldly life, due to maadakta (intoxication of the ego of ‘I am Chandubhai’), one has completely lost awareness of everything about one’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/in-the-worldly-life-due-to-maadakta-intoxication-of-the-ego-of-i-am/)

[Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/)

> [“At the moment, then, of Man’s victory over Nature, we find the whole human race subjected to some individual men, and those individuals subjected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/at-the-moment-then-of-man-s-victory-over-nature-we-find-the-whole/)

[C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/)

> [She might be without country, without nation, but inside her there was still a being that could exist and be free, that could simply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-maas/she-might-be-without-country-without-nation-but-inside-her-there-was/)

[Sharon Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-maas/)

> [“Self-realization or self-knowing or awakening is about knowing/ becoming conscious of our true nature and living in harmony with the universe in an ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-vazhakunnathu/self-realization-or-self-knowing-or-awakening-is-about-knowing/)

[Thomas Vazhakunnathu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-vazhakunnathu/)

> [“There are some things that one individual can do for another, and there are some things that one race can do for another. But,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/there-are-some-things-that-one-individual-can-do-for-another-and/)

[Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/)

> [“Why were there no words that spoke positively about being concerned about the self? Why was there only negative connotation in terms like "selfish",…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-j-dalton/why-were-there-no-words-that-spoke-positively-about-being-concerned/)

A.J. Dalton

[Browse all 11,949 Identity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identity/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Ultimately all idolatry is worship of the self projected and objectified: all idolization is self-idolization.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Will Herberg"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-herberg/ultimately-all-idolatry-is-worship-of-the-self-projected-and/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Identity"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-herberg/ultimately-all-idolatry-is-worship-of-the-self-projected-and/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/will-herberg-65017_identity_ultimately-all-idolatry-is-worship-of-th_1583200.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/will-herberg-65017_identity_ultimately-all-idolatry-is-worship-of-th_1583200.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/will-herberg-65017_identity_ultimately-all-idolatry-is-worship-of-th_1583200.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Ultimately all idolatry is worship of the self projected and objectified: all idolization is self-idolization.” — Will Herberg",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Will Herberg",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-herberg/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Ultimately all idolatry is worship of...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-herberg/ultimately-all-idolatry-is-worship-of-the-self-projected-and/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-herberg/ultimately-all-idolatry-is-worship-of-the-self-projected-and/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
