The problem is syncretism, always has been.
The Israelites were surrounded by pagan cults of hybrid and animal-like deities, that's why the prohibition in Exodus 20:4, it says nothing about the images of those in Heaven.
If the image is not a "mere symbol" then you are already admitting that it has power in itself
The bronze saraph serpent was a symbol, like the Chi Rho sign, while an image is not a 'mere symbol' in the sense that it's a reflection that aims for a resemblance that approximates reality as closely as possible, like a photograph. It's a simple distinction, a photon has a symbol, but also can be viewed in the form of an image. If Jesus had not come until today, there would be videos of Him, and recordings of his teachings.
The RCC has a protocol for disposing of unwanted images or statues, they should be burned or destroyed in such a way as to not mix the remaining matter with trash or sewage, you don't do that to an object of worship if it had any Godly powers.
The Lutheran's are probably the closest to the early church (3rd century) on this topic. They don't venerate or worship through images, but neither do they reject Christian artwork altogether. Luther's Rose is not an object of worship or veneration. It is symbolic of his beliefs, a summation of his theology.
I know there's no veneration, the five petals must mean the Five Solas, I thought about it after writing the comment. There's no particular veneration, but the image is present in the house of worship which should still offend those who interpret Exodus 20:4 as prohibiting even the creation of likenesses of earthly things.
Depicting Jesus in movies or in non religious art isn't controversial as there's no veneration, however some enemies of Christianity still get an allergic reaction seeing them, like those TDS sufferers who might deface a Trump picture poster.
The Byzantines had a procession for Mary the night before they were taken out by the Muslims. They prayed for the icon to save the city.
My take on the Byzantines is that their sin was pride. When Constantinople became the capital its patriarchate secured the position of superiority over the remaining ones due to politics and economics. Antioch, Jerusalem, and Alexandria lost the competition despite their seniority, but not without a fight. All subsequently fell, when with God's grace they should have expanded and conquered their enemies, nipping the rising scourge. Rome had no pull at the time, yet time has corrected the arrangement properly.
In Western Europe, the Protestant nations without icons became the least Christian- caused or correlated, that's another discussion.
But going back to the non-religious Europe, I still prefer westerners in general. If only judged by works and not by faith, I'd rather be among Danes, Swedes, Dutchmen, or Germans, than among Russians, Romanians, or Ukrainians. Westerners even in secular countries are much more trustworthy, dependable, and honest in personal and business dealings. Also if you watch the videos of Russian soldiers in the war thread, it would seem five really strong and ugly profanities make up three fourths of their language. I also appreciate the uncompromising attitude real Americans (Protestants and I assume WASPs at that) display in the piracy thread, that's what the America everyone admired was supposed to be about. But this issue is like Billy Joel-
they showed you a statue, told you to pray. I don't understand this reduced approach.
The images are man-made, the Word is God-revealed. This is why images can never be spiritual unlike the Word.
The deeds and words of Jesus are God-revealed, the rest of the Gospels are Holy Spirit inspired man-made writings. The Holy Spirit later spoke through the Apostles and most of it has not been recorded, we have what we need, the writings of the Church Fathers are inspired too. All of our gifts and talents come from God, so we cannot boast. Since God also revealed Himself- Jesus said whoever has seen Him has seen the Father- I see nothing wrong with the veneration of His images, pious and inspired, prayerful Christians made them. We have the Shroud, and the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe which I believe were not man-made, they're not demonic deceptions, they evoke the names of Jesus and Mary which demons can't stand.
