Elvis, the Elements and Other Idols

by Frank W. Aderholdt, Jr.

"I am the Lord, that is My name; I will
My glocyto another.' (Isaiah 42:8)
"For they exclianged the truth of God for a
lie and worshippea and served the creature
rather than the Creator, who is blessed
forever. Amen.'' (Romans 1 :25)
Sunday, August 16, 1987, was not
only the toed's Day, the weekly celebra-
tion of the triumphant resurrection of
Jesus Christ our Lord. It was also a
field day for Satan and his soldiers. For
this day revealed to us a most remark-
able demonstration of the allegiance of
fallen man to his idols. On this day
millions of Americans, with little else
in common except their native land,
urtited in the worship of man and the
creation rather than the CreatOr.
The worship of man was most clear-
ly seen on the weekend of August 16th
last year in Memphis, Tennessee, in
and around Graceland Mansion, the
horne and grave site of TilE KING OF
ROCK AND ROLL, Elvis Presley.
Elvis had died precisely ten years be-
fore. Anyone who has not been on a
desert island with no radio or TV for the
past decade knows that a cult of "Elvis
worship" has been growing steadily
since the singer's death. We have no de-
sire, nor is there any need, to say any-
thing against Elvis himself. He was a
groundbreaking entertainer with im-
mense. talent, as well as a tragic figure.
No, it' is not Elvis Presley that con-
cerns us, but the astonishing religion
that has developed with Elvis as a cult
figure of mythic proportions.
If you watched or read of the events
surrounding the commemoratiOtt of
Elvis's death, you know how seriously
his worshippers treat their religious
rites. We should not laugh at these
people; they are most earnest con-
cerning their god. I saw a television
report on one middle-aged woman who
had driven over a thousand miles in a
Frank W. Aderholdt, Jr. Is a member of
the First Presbyterian Church (PCA) ill
Clarksdale, Mississippi and a Jleased
minister In Covenant Presbytery.
van wi.th some friends to the shrine at
Gracelai1d. Her remark as they ap-
proached the gates oh Elvis Presley
Boulevard was a rapturous squeal of
delight, "Oh, my god!" She speaks
more truth than she realizes, I thought.
One man remarked during the candle-
light vigil around the gtave, "There's so
much Elvis spirit around here that I
couldn't sleep if I wanted to." Hand-
written testimonies such as "Elvis, you
liberated olll' souls" littered his grave.
One woman who had participated in the
vigil handed a holy relic to a man who
had not been there: Stuck in a Bartles
and Jaymes wine cooler bottle, a candle
which had given light for the faithful
and proclaimed the holder's undying
love for "1be King."
The Elvis mania is merely one ex-
treme symptom of a deadly spiritual
disease which is epidemic in our
ciety: The worship of man himself. It
is painfully obvious in the enter-
tainment industry but just as clearly
seen in education, in every political
campaign, and even in the Church,
where musicians, sports figures, and
other assorted celebrities exalt worldly
achievement over godly character. When
men and women refuse to bow the knee
to Christ, the mily King of Kings and
Lord of Lords, they will always wor-
ship some aspect of God's creation; and
often it will be another man or woman,
a fellow creature made in the image of
God. The idol may be Elvis, an "ex-
pert" in some field who holds sway
over you, a favorite name in the news
or the media, your spouse, your lover,
your children, or--most pitifully--even
you yourself. But the object of the
worShip is second in importance to the
sin which gives it birth, the most
serious of all sins: The willful rejection
of the living God, and the giving to
another the worship and service due to
Him alone.
The liturgy of the Church of Elvis
was not the Olily great evidence of our
national worship of the creation on Sun-
day, August 16. This was the day of the
grand "New Age" orgy, the time of"ltar-
monic convergence," of planetary align-
ment, of the tJShering in of the Age of
Aquarius (or some such), of peace,
hope, and love for those who are really
enough in tune with the universal ele-
ments to get with the program. It was
the day during which some very sophis-
ticated, educated people donned masks
and danced across the roof of the famed
Peabody Hotel in downtown Memphis
to link up psychically with thousands
of other New Age believers all over the
world.
What is this phenomenon known as
the "New Age Movement"'! It is a
strange mixture of Eastern mysticism,
high technology, occultism, reincarna-
tion, astrology,. self-help psychology,
and general media hype. Dr. Henry M.
Morris, famed creation scientist and
evangelical theologian, wrote this ex-
cellent description of the New Age
Movement in a recent article from the
Institute for Qeation Research:
"A strange religion has been coming
into prominence in recent years. Some-
times mis-called the 'New Age Move-
ment,' this phenomenon is in reality a
complex of modern science and ancient
p(.lganism, featuring systems theory,
computer science and mathematical phy-
sics along with astrology, occultism,
religious mysticism and nature wor-
ship. Ostensibly offered as a reaction
against the sterile materialism of
Western thought, 'his influential sys-
tem appeals both to man's religious
Page 24----------------------------The Counsel of Cbalcedon, March, 1988
nature and his intellectual pride. Its goal
is to become the world's one religion."
Even though we think that the "New
Age Movement" has about as much
chance of becoming the world's one re-
ligion as the Pope does of being elected
Moderator of the General Assembly of
the Presbyterian Church in America,
this new brand of pagan thought has
captured the minds of many and will
affect many more before it has run its
course. One devotee in Memphis was
described as "a Presbyterian and astro-
logy buff' (in that order?). Orthodox,
Biblical Christianity is of course ana-
thema to the "New Agers." All reli-
gious distinctives must give way to the
powerful surge of psychic forces, the
idea that "God" is simply the sum total
of all things in the universe. The uni-
verse itself and the elements thereof--
not a personal God who created all
things and rules them according to His
sovereign will--must be worshipped as
that which gives life and breath to all
things.
Of course, this whole idea is obvious-
ly self-contradictory. No combination
of space, time, chance, and impersonal
matter could ever give rise to a personal
universe full of meaning and purpose.
But the "New Agers" continue never-
theless to chant, meditate, and preach
the message of universal brotherhood
and the worship of literally everything
under the sun. as well as the sun itself.
These flower children with personal
computers, who push for world social-
ism while spouting "pyramid power,"
consider the Gospel of Jesus Christ the
most offensive of religious views, the
greatest obstacle in their path to world
unity and a new age of perfect harmony.
At least they're right on one point
What is the common thread that
connects the worshippers of Elvis
weeping at Graceland Mansion and the
"New Agers" dancing to the universal
rhythms of the elements on the roof of
the Peabody Hotel? Surely not educa-
tion or income levels. Most Elvis wor-
shippers seem to be less educated and
lower on the economic scale, while
many in the New Age Movement are
upper-middle class professionals with
graduate degrees. Their basic unity,
whether they would admit it or not, is
this: A rejection of the one true, living,
creator God, His only-begotten Son
Jesus Christ, and the inerrant Word of
Scripture which is the only authority
for all men in all places at all times.
Truly there is nothing new under the
sun. The ttrSt-century subjects of the
Roman Empire could say, "We have no
King but Caesar" (John 19: 15) and cry
out to King Herod, "The voice of a god
and not of a man!" (Acts 12:22). And,
as J .A. Thompson remarked in his
masterful commentary on the book of
Jeremiah, the ancient Israelites were
fascinated by Baal worship and sought
after false prophets who "gave
themselves up to the leading of the
strange psychic powers within nature"
rather than to the Lord of the covenant;
the only true God.
When men reject the true God, they
will always want "to have their ears
tickled" and will "accumulate for them-
selvea teachers in accordance to their
desires; and will turn away their ears
from the truth, and will tum aside to
myths" (II Timothy 4:3,4). Is this not
precisely what we see in the worship of
Elvis, the elements, and other idols?
Men apart from Christ want gods after
their own devising, gods who will give
the stamp of approval to whatever sins
they love most
Note the words of St Augustine,
writing of Rome in the early fifth-
century A.D. This passage from his
masterpiece, The City of God, on
Roman paganism sounds like a com-
mentary on our nation in the 1980's.
Describing the kind of society that :
those who worship various idols w ~ t ..
Augustine writes,
"But the worshippers and lovers of
those gods, whom they delighted to
imitate in their criminal wickedness, are
unconcerned about the utter corruption
of their .country. 'So long as it lasts,'
they say, 'so long as it enjoys material
prosperity, and the glory of victorious
war, or, better, the security of peace,
why should we worry? What concerns
us is that we should get richer all the
time, to have enough for extravagant
spending every day, eoough to keep our
inferiors in their place. It is all right if
the poor serve the rich, so as to get
enough to eat and to enjoy a lazy life
under their patronage; while the rich
make use of the poor to ensure a crowd
of hangers-on to minister to their pride;
if the people applaud those who supply
them with pleasures rather than those
who offer salutary advice, if fW one
imposes disagreeable duties, or forbids
perverted delights; if kings are interested
not in the morality but the docility of
their subjects; if provinces are under
rulers who are regarded oot as directors
of conduct but as controllers of material
things and providers of material satis-
factions, and are treated with servile fear
instead of sincere respect. . . It is a
good thing to have imposing houses,
luxuriously furnished, where lavish
banquets can be held, where people can,
if they like, spend night and day in
debauchery, and eat and drink till they
are sick: to have the din of dancing
everywhere, and theatres full of fevered
shouts of degenerate pleasure and of
every kind of cruel and degraded in-
dulgence. Anyone who disapproves of
this kind of happiness should rank as a
public enemy: anyone whn attempts to
change it or get rid of it shnuld be
hustled out of hearing by the freedom-
loving majority: he should be kicked
out, and removed from the land of the
living. We should reckon the true gods
to be those who see that the people get
this happiness and then preserve it for
them. Then let them be worshipped as
they wish, let them demand what shows
they like, so that they can enjoy them
with their devotees or a1 least, receive
them from their worshippers. All the
gods have to do is to ensure that there
is no threat to this happiness from
enemies, or plagues, or any other
disasters."' (Book II, Chapter 20, Betten-
son translation)
What shall we say to these things?
Christians certainly should not be para-
noid, fearful of each new manifestation
of man's idolatrous nature as a threat to
our faith. For nothing in all the uni-
verse is a threat to our faith; we are to
be "more than conquerors" through
Christ who loved us. We should not
fear man, but we should approach all
the i o ~ of man with Biblical realism.
The Counsel or Cbalccdon, March, 1988-----------------------------Page 25
Satart is a roaring lion, seek;ing
one to devoui ([ Peter 5!8) .. So We must.
put on the whole. armor. of God, .
sisting die devil with all of Gdd's
might so that he will flee from us. The
gates of hell cannot prevail against the
Church; when will we take this pro-
mise seriously, and act accoidingly?
Today Christians have a golderi op'-
p<>rtunity to bear wimess to olir. idola-
trous generation. The Church is
ning to awake from Iter
slumber and stir once again iri obedi-
ence to the Scriptures in every area of
life. We are slo'Y.'lY but steadily training
a new army of Christian spldiers who
will smash the idols of. men 'With tne
Gospel and the sword of tlle Spirit, the
Word of God. Our witness will only be
as strong, though, as our lives are holy.
Is a godly patteni of our own live$ clear
to everyone? Are there traces of idol
worship to be seen in our daiiy con-
versation, the plans we make, acti-
vities we pursue? Have our own talents
or abilities, the people arourid us, or the
things we possess become our refuge
and OlJ! strength? (}f us still has a
great . deal of repenting to do and hOly
commitments to make before God will
again pOur out .great .blessings upon our
land.
The victOry assured; let
us not become weary in well-doing!. Let
it be without controversy that our in-
9ur family lives, and the
corporate lives' of our chUn:henre con;.:
fanned to the mind ofChristas' revealed
in His law. Let us proclaim the. Gaspel
of the love and grace of God in Christ
in all its puricy; let us obey the law of
God .in all its fullness dOWii to the
minutest detail. Let us never until
wt! a christian nation, in which
God is worshipPed and ad<ied
on evety street and in every institUtion:
Let us pray imd work for a nation in
which the idol worshippers will . have
the still, small voice compared to
the mighty strength of Christian testi-
mony.
Is all this too much for you? Is 'your
faith too small to grasp the vict6ry that
must come? Have you been: intimidated
by the numbers and loud bellowings of
all the idol worshippers in our land?
' .
.
Remember tllat Christ iSYbrt 'His d.tone;
lte possesses . all ailthority .m. heaven
and on earth. We pray in. the. prayerJie
taught . us, done ear.th
.aS itis fn. heaven.: . We cooelude With
stirring words of encouragement :frQm
thematerful Chlllth
historian, J .H. d'Aubigne; in' his
biography. of the
centuty English .. : and
statesman, Oliver eromweli, . d'Aublgi)e
writes of Christian reVivlil in.
well's time. as a token' oH)P<i's :faithful
dealings with His people :through 'the
ages, a contitiual prorni'se .. of
ble8sing foll!Jwing the dedine of
: ''This Jcuih, of which Oliver. con-:
stituted himself the defefl!ler, cannoi
perish. It may be covered and tit
orie.time bj the arid sandS ofinfolel#j,
and at her by the waves
of hUman. passions. or by. the Images;
si:uplices, atiil relics of superstition;--'
but it always revives, lifts up its head,
and rtappears. The .of Qod
are for all times, and they have iii .all
ages the same 'eternal truth,. the same
eternaZ. ' beauty. they are like those
foc/cs in the mi.dst of the ociciir., which;
the flood-tide covers, and which sdim
swallowed up forever.. but which-tilways
raise their tops again abQve Jhe waters,'
vain does one generation imagine it
has hidden the everlastingiock o[Gud's
truth, it wili become. visible In' the
There is a coiliinuaz alterantin; a
consiani str-uggle . iighi : imd
darkness, buitl}e iightprev(i;ls tit last:
Ar.uJ Yen s)w14ld an age
which fancies it haS forever
God's truth,--shoulti . Qliy w)lcaidc
eruption of society: it with
the ashes of anbther Vesuvius . : . :. ;
Pompeii after seventeen . :lia.r
again 'restored .'to: the ofdtry its
houses and its itspafaces and its
temples. its circus Q.1Jfi . its' amp hi
theatres. Can it thought
truth and the life, ,which hoi give!'
in His' Gospel, will 'be less perenniiil
than the frail of men1 There
ate perhaps. now. ' sUbtefranean; fires
thteatelting the tr.u,lfoi God. A. da,ring
pantheistic and. .. phifosophy
imagines that u hai 'flone wii" ilfe
crucified One. Ani1 it even. sofa'r
. .. '
succeed as to throw a little dust and kiva
o'-n' ;1te,: ihe. Lord (J/
H.e.aven will blow upon it, (lnd the dust
shaJJ be $C(lttered and the lava be
Ptotector pages 230-31) ,'
. Should fear the wornhip of Etvls,
the elementS, 9r any other idols b'y a:
bent on itsown destruction? Qod
f()itid! "Let him who boasts' , boast In
tord" (I Corinthians 1:31), for (lUr
Qed' llas promised that a day is coming
in:, which "the earth will be full of the
knowledge of the Lord as the waters
sea'' (IsaiaJt 11:9). .
IEcfitor's Anyone interested
iri obtainiilg a copy of Cromwell,
The Protector, by 1.H. Merle
<f:A.ubigne, may have one free for a
$20J>d donation to The Counsel of
Chalced!m.] . 0
. .
Join us in the
Worship of God

11rebyttricamn

Sunday School - 9:45 a.m.
Worship Service - l0:55 a.m.
Sunday evening-5:55p.m.
Thursday Bible
Study-7:30p.m
For other opportunities
of worship and service,
call (404) 396-0965
The church is located
at 7901 Roberts Drive
(corner of Roberts &
Spalding, one-half mile
south of the Northridge
exit off highway 400)
Dunwoody, Georgia.
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