Christian Flag
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The Christian Flag is a flag designed in the early 20th century to represent all of Christianity (see also Christendom), but it has been adopted mainly by Protestant churches in North America, Africa and Latin America. The flag has a white field, with a red Latin cross inside a blue canton. The shade of red on the cross symbolizes the blood that Jesus Christ shed on Calvary, the blue is a picture of the royalty of Jesus Christ as King of Kings, and the white represents the purity of Jesus Christ. The dimensions of the flag and canton have no official specifications.
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[edit] Origins
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The Christian Flag was first conceived on September 26, 1897, at Brighton Chapel on Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York in the United States. The superintendent of a Sunday school, Charles C. Overton, was forced to give an impromptu lecture to the gathered students, because the scheduled speaker had failed to arrive for the event. Overton saw a flag of the United States in the front of the chapel (a common custom in many American churches). Drawing on the flag for inspiration, he gave a speech asking the students what a flag representing Christianity would look like.
Overton thought about his improvised speech for many years afterward. In 1907, he and Ralph Diffendorfer, secretary of the Methodist Young People's Missionary Movement, designed and began promoting the flag.
[edit] Symbolism
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Since the Christian Flag was inspired by the flag of the United States, it takes its colors and overall design from the American flag. However, elements of the flag represent Christian concepts.
The flag's most conspicuous symbol is the Christian cross, the most universal symbol for Christianity. The red color represents the blood of Jesus and brings to mind his crucifixion. Christians believe that Jesus' death and resurrection is the means God uses to save believers from their sins. The cross and blood have been used since earliest Christianity to symbolize salvation through Jesus; in the words of the Apostle Paul, "Through [Jesus] God reconciles himself to all things... making peace by the blood of the cross" (Colossians 1:20).
The white field draws on symbolism throughout the Bible equating white clothes with purity and forgiveness. People who have been "washed white as snow" in the Bible have been cleansed from their sins (Isaiah 1:18). In conventional vexillology a white flag is linked to surrender, a reference to the Biblical description Jesus' non-violence and surrender to God's will.
The blue square represents faithfulness, truth, and sincerity[1].
Since the flag is not tied to any specific religious denomination or church institution, it signifies the unity of all followers of Jesus Christ within the Kingdom of God despite historical, cultural, and dogmatic differences. Its simplicity makes it easily copied by any community of Christians.
The canton of this flag transgresses one of the traditional rules of flag design, which states that two colors (other than white or yellow) have to be separated by a metal (silver = white, or gold = yellow). The white field would also be advised against in conventional vexillology as it is easily mistaken for the white flag of surrender.
[edit] Usage
The flag was first accepted by the Mainline Protestant denominations in the United States, and by the 1980s many institutions had described policies for displaying it inside churches. During World War II the flag was flown along with the U.S. flag in a number of Lutheran churches, many of them with German backgrounds, who wanted to show their solidarity with the United States during the war with Germany.
The Christian Flag spread outside North America with Protestant missionaries. It can be seen today in or outside many Protestant churches throughout the world, particularly in Latin America and Africa. It has so far been adopted by very few churches in Europe. Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and other non-Protestant branches of Christianity do not generally use the flag.
[edit] Pledge
Some American churches practice a "pledge of allegiance" or "affirmation of loyalty" to the Christian Flag, based on the Pledge of Allegiance to the American flag. There are various versions of the pledge, including the following:
I pledge allegiance to the Christian Flag, and to the Savior, for whose kingdom it stands. One Savior, crucified, risen and coming again, with life and liberty for all who believe.
I pledge allegiance to the Christian Flag and to the Savior for whose kingdom it stands; One Savior, crucified, risen, and coming again with life and Liberty to all who repent and believe The Gospel
I pledge allegiance to the Christian flag and to the Savior for whose kingdom it stands; One brotherhood, uniting all Christians in service and in love.
I pledge allegiance to the Christian flag and to the gospel for which it stands; One Savior, crucified, risen and coming again, with life eternal for all who believe.
[edit] Other Christian flags
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This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2008) |
In the United States, Catholic Churches in communion with the Holy See display the Vatican flag along with the American flag, typically opposite sides of the sanctuary, near the front door, or outside.
Eastern Orthodox Churches, particularly jurisdictions of the Greek Orthodox Church under the direct authority of the Ecumenical Patriarch, often display his flag, which is a Byzantine double-headed eagle on a yellow (Or) field.
Additionally, both Catholic and Orthodox Churches maintain the use of the Labarum, a historical symbol of Christianity, which is rarely used as a flag at present.
Parishes in the Episcopal Church frequently fly the Episcopal flag, a Cross of St. George with the upper-left canton containing a Cross of St. Andrew formed by nine cross-crosslets (representing the nine original dioceses) on a blue background.
 Flag of Vatican City |
 Flag of the Ecumenical Patriarch in Constantinople |
 Flag of the Episcopal Church |
[edit] See also
[edit] References
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This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. (February 2009) |
- Coffman, Elesha. "Ask the Editors." Christian History & Biography. 13 July, 2001. [1].
- Sidwell, Mark. "The Christian Flag", Fundamentalism File Research Report, 18 December 1998 [2]
[edit] External links
- Discussion on Flags of the World website dealing with the Christian Flag.
- Christian Flag Christian Flag History
- Flying the Christian Flag: Article discussing the flag's use in Africa
- "Teaching Resource" Christian Flag Craft for Kids
- How Christian flags may be used Explains some of the uses and purposes for Christian flags for praise and worship
- The Kingdom of God Flag An alternative to the Christian Flag
