Like many
people, I commute between Cape and Jackson via Kingshighway. On national days,
I am always impressed by the flag displays at the county park and at St. Andrew
church. St. Andrew also had the flag display up for the recent National Day of
Prayer. The flag display at St. Andrew got me thinking about the presence of
American flags at churches, including our own. My conclusion is that it is
appropriate to display the American flag inside and outside the church. This is
an unpopular opinion among mainline pastors, so I guess I need to explain how I
arrived at that point of view.
Our
congregation has two sets of flags consisting of American flag and a Christian
Flag, one set located in the front corners of the sanctuary at floor level and
one set in the worship area of our multipurpose room. The Christian Flag has an
interesting history. According to an article on the “Christianity Today”
website, “The Christian flag dates back to an impromptu speech given by Charles
C. Overton, a Sunday school superintendent in New York, on September 26, 1897.
The guest speaker for the Sunday school kick-off didn't show up, so Overton had
to wing it. Spying an American flag near the podium, he started talking about
flags and their symbolism. Along the way he proposed that Christians should
have their own flag—an idea that stayed on his mind long after the speech. In
1907 Overton teamed up with Ralph Diffendorfer, secretary to the Methodist
Young People's Missionary Movement, to produce and promote the flag.”
The designs
and colors on both the Christian and American flags symbolize the meanings and
values behind the flags. An account of the flag from 1909 states that, “The
ground is white, representing peace, purity, and innocence. In the upper corner
is a blue square, the color of the unclouded sky, emblematic of heaven, the
home of the Christian; also a symbol of faith and trust. In the center of the
blue is the cross, the ensign and chosen symbol of Christianity: the cross is
red, typical of Christ's blood.” Most of us are more familiar with the
symbolism of the American flag, “Today the flag consists of thirteen horizontal
stripes, seven red alternating with 6 white. The stripes represent the original
13 colonies; the stars represent the 50 states of the Union. The colors of the
flag are symbolic as well: Red symbolizes Hardiness and Valor, White symbolizes
Purity and Innocence, and Blue represents Vigilance, Perseverance, and Justice.”
It is hard for me to understand how anyone could object to the values expressed
by these flags.
As a
Pastor, I am deeply moved by the American flag ceremony at the funerals of
military veterans. “A burial flag is draped over the deceased's casket as a
pall during services. Just prior to the casket being lowered into the ground,
the flag is ceremonially folded and presented to the deceased's next of kin as
a token of respect.” This ceremony is very deeply moving for the family and for
this pastor. I have never considered removing
the flags from our church. In fact, I have given prominent place to the flags
by bringing them up onto the stage next to the altar on Sundays where we
celebrate national holidays: Veterans Day, Memorial Day, and Independence Day.
This seemed natural and appropriate to me.
Most
sources agree that the display of flags inside our churches became common
during World War II, when there was a strong feeling that all ethnic groups
needed to demonstrate their patriotism (especially true for churches with a German
background) and when congregations wanted to show their support for their many
family members serving overseas. It was during this period that display of the
Christian flag also appears to have become common, as a kind of balance to the
American flag. Many of the churches that continue to display the two flags
probably do so as a matter of tradition without giving the matter much thought.
The
prevailing viewpoint of Pastors, both those I have known over the years and
those who write articles on the Internet, is that the flags do not belong in
church. There appear to be many pastors who would like to remove the flags from
their churches, but are afraid doing so would put their job in jeopardy. The
now-retired priest at Cape's Christ Episcopal Church caused the flags to
mysteriously disappear when no one else was looking. There are probably
churches where the pastor could remove the flags quietly and nobody would ever
notice.
Those who
oppose the flag give a variety of reasons. A representative of progressive
American Baptist churches gives a typical list.
1.
At worst, the placement of an American flag at
the front of the sanctuary can result in “flag worship” — a form of idolatry.
2.
At best, when the American flag is placed
alongside of the Christian flag, it signals equivalence between the Kingdom of
God and the kingdom of Caesar. Christians know that this is not the case. We
are citizens of two kingdoms. We are to respect our governmental institutions
and pray for our governmental leaders, but that must always be secondary to our
commitment to God. Faith in God is superior to love of country; allegiance to
God transcends all nationalism.
3.
In any case, displaying the American flag in the
sanctuary in America diminishes our ability to reach out to non-Americans. It
sends an unfortunate signal to believers and unbelievers alike from around the
world that somehow the Kingdom of God and the United States of America are
either the same or are on equal footing.
Other flag opponents are much more outspoken in their
opposition to patriotism, their disagreements with US government policies, and
their rejection of any identification with “shameful” American history and
America's “imperialist” role on the world stage. Many flag opponents seem to
exclusively identify the American flag with the Federal government and the US
Military.
I agree
that the cross, not the American flag, should have pride of place in the
sanctuary. I see no need to recite the “Pledge of Allegiance” during church
services. I do not think a church needs to match the super-sized flags on
display at car dealerships and truck stops. I would even say that the flag
displays at St. Andrews are a little over-the-top.
However, I
believe that it is perfectly appropriate to display the American flag both
inside and outside the church building. Flag opponents argue that this display
makes the Church subservient to the State. I don't agree.
1.
The flag symbolizes the American nation, not the
government. Governments will come and go, but “Old Glory” will remain. Loving
our country is not the same as loving the government.
2.
By displaying the flag, we assert that the
church is relevant to the life of the nation. We are stating that we are
willing to provide the values, the citizens, and the leaders that the nation
needs to flourish.
3.
By displaying the flag, we are stating that this
is a nation “under God.” We are acknowledging that we live in a nation blessed
by God's providential care, a nation living under God's laws, and accountable
to God's judgment. Our nation was founded on these beliefs.
Displaying
the flag is a statement that the church is not a community that is cut off from
the nation around us by a false claim of being “holier than thou.” Christians
are first and foremost ambassadors of the Kingdom of God, and members of the
Body of Christ. However, there is a strong theme in Biblical Christianity that
good Christians carry out their role of ambassadors of the Kingdom by being
exemplary citizens.
1 Peter 2:13 Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to
every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, 14 or
to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend
those who do right. 15 For it is God’s will that by doing good you should
silence the ignorant talk of foolish people. 16 Live as free people, but do not
use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves. 17 Show proper
respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.
Peter was
writing about life under a corrupt, unelected, pagan dictatorship. Early
Christians would honor the emperor, but would not worship him. Many chose to
die rather than to worship Caesar as a god. If we display the flag, we honor
our country, but we do not worship our government. As individuals and a
community, we Christians have to draw a line that we will not cross. There are
some things our government may ask us to do that we will not do. However, we
must never give up praying for and working for the good of our nation.
Our nation,
like all nations, belongs to God. God is not dead or on vacation. God the
Father, the Son, and Holy Spirit is completely sovereign and everything good in
our lives comes from his hand. If we display the flag because we affirm that
this is “one nation under God,” then we are doing right by God and our
neighbors. Because of this belief, I have asked our church council to consider
installing a flagpole and illuminated American flag at the corner of Ellis and
Merriwether. God Bless America!
Blessings,
Pastor Dan
