THE

GOLDEN

CALF

Rabbi Israel Chait
The insight the Torah affords us in delineating the story of the Golden Calf is extremely relevant. Modern man might think that these are paganistic emotions to which he is not susceptible. However, one need only observe ... to recognize the strong hold the emotion for idol worship has, even today. ... idolize a physical statue which represents a human being ... as God. Objectively, it may seem absurd, but yet its appeal attests to mans primitive desire for the security of the physical.

http://www.mesora.org/goldencalf.html

The sin of idolatry is the key to understanding and unraveling every other sin. Perhaps the greatest idolatry, the real Golden Calf that must be confronted, is the fixed sense of self that we build up in reaction to the constant threat of pain and separation.
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It is possible that every sin has its roots in fear and that every fear can be traced back, if we dig deep enough, to the root fear of Death. The Golden Calf is built when we lose faith in an invisible, unnamable God who may have abandoned us to die in the wilderness. We can build a life around this Golden Calf, placing something other than God-the-essential-mystery at the center of our attention. That life built around the worship of security or happiness or wealth or fame obscures the root fear of Death that has unconsciously driven us.

http://rabbishefagold.hypermart.net/GoldenCalf.html

The behavior associated with idolatry, the total loss of self-restraint and the absence of any rational moral guidance are the antithesis of the Torah's outlook. It is not the golden calf but rather the behavior accompanying it…

http://www.upress.virginia.edu/books/sassower.html