Today we embark on a new leg of our journey through the book of Exodus. The events of chapter 32 are difficult and tragic, God has just made a covenant with his people, a covenant which they affirmed and agreed to participate in. When Moses delays in coming down from the mountain, the people choose for themselves to stray from the commands of God, and form for themselves their own image of a golden calf. An idol they quickly begin to worship and sing to. As we reflect on the events of this portion of the narrative, we ask why idolatry is such an attractive and comfortable pattern of behavior for the people of God? What is at the heart of idolatry? And where do golden calves still exist in our culture and world today?
