“The subtle danger of
syncretistic worship lies in its claim to be worshipping
the true God, Yahweh. When the Israelites brought idols and
idolatrous practices into the Temple, they did not think of
their actions as an abandonment of Yahweh. They thought of it
as just supplementing their worship with customs borrowed from
heathen idol worship. Even the golden calf at Mount Sinai
was not regarded as a substitute god to replace Yahweh;
rather, it was regarded as a symbolic representation of Yahweh. This
can be seen in Aaron's reference to the golden calf as the God
"which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt" and his proclamation that the worship of the golden
calf would be "a feast unto Yahweh" - not a feast
to some Egyptian god (Ex. 32:4f).”
- SYNCRETISM: A Blending of Paganism &
Truth,
by
Dr. Daniel Botkin, (Gates of Eden, July-August 2005) p.8