Good point of distinction.
Surely that is how many that Islam describes as 'idol worshippers' view their own practise?
Yes exactly. Ancestry worship is not (at least to one guy that explained it to me) not worshiping your ancestors, you can be a Christian and still "pray" to your ancestors. I don't know the full details.
Christians might not venerate the cross itself, its a way to get closer. Or statues of the Virgn Mary etc
Same goes for statues of Buddha.
Or statues of Gods and Goddesses in Hinduism.
These various forms of statue-worshipping seem to come from animist roots, and then the statutes and objects evolved to become focal points for ones worship.
The pagan arabs, some might have actually venerated the objects, and some used the statues to get closer to their Gods. And their Gods was a way to get closer to God.
Muslims will say we face Kaaba, we don't pray to Kaaba, we don't worship Kaaba. Then pray tell, what is the kissing the Quran about? Or being extremly careful when handling it. What is the Black Stone about?
How come muslims can define the boundaries, but when magnified the lines seem blurred. Pointing this out will cause outrage. Imagine calling a muslim an idolater, the irony. Yet muslims go around accusing other religions of idolatry and make snide, spiteful remarks as well, at best, and worst, violent threats.