On Flags in Churches

An interesting and informative article regarding the use of flags in the church sanctuary can be found over on the Gottesdienst site.  I would venture to guess that a majority of LCMS parishes have an American flag in the church, along with the so-called Christian flag.  The argument that the church ought not have this in a place that should point only to Jesus has warrant.  A while back our flags were moved from the inner chancel area, where they had been for years, to a different location at the front of the nave to accommodate the newer banners which looked better in the chancel area.  Admittedly I was concerned about the fallout.  Surprisingly no cry of foul occurred.  That said, I struggle with just how a pastor should handle this delicate situation.  Anyone who knows me realizes that I have been willing to suffer controversy for a worthy cause, so not taking on the flag issue cannot be attributed to cowardice.  The moving of my flags actually helped in reducing their prominence in connection with the holy things of God, and it wasn't even my original idea.  Still, should pastors take on the presence of flags in the sanctuary as their 'line in the sand' cause?  One pastor who commented on the above article resigned over a controversy connected with the display of a flag.  Personally, with all the other issues facing the modern church, flags and their removal are not high on my list.  It is certainly not the 'hill to die on,' as another overused phase notes.  Now if I was planting a new church and starting from scratch, that would be another situation.  Then, I would simply suggest the flags be omitted.  In this case there is no sacred tradition to fight.  Your thoughts?

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Firefighter's Cross

Image
[Note: A similar article to this will be shared with my department at their next meeting. During this Lenten season when we are meditating on the significance and meaning of the Passion of our Lord and the Cross at Golgotha, it seemed like one way to offer a witness to the department that captured their interest and yet was not too heavy.] [Editorial Note: In response to a recent comment on this article I have made some changes to the original version of this article especially in regard to references to the so-called St. Florian's Cross. For any confusion the previous unreferenced information may have caused I apologize. I hope that the changes are satisfactory.] THE STORY OF THE MALTESE CROSS In many ways the familiar symbol to the right requires no explanation. It is the universal insignia of firefighting nationwide. Yet the precise origins of this symbol are less clear. The most popular explanation proposes its beginning in the far distant past of medieval Crusaders fi...
Read more

Historical Roots of the Warham Guild Hood

Image
In doing just a little checking on the internet, it's interesting to see how the Warham Guild hood, which I have as part of my STM degree attire, is actually a throwback to the Medieval hood. One article notes "the work of the Warham Guild in its imaginative renderings of medieval hoods" (reference is from here ). Again, here is my hood: The Medieval hood, which was originally a very practical outer garment to cover a person's head and shoulders, protecting both from the elements, bears striking resemblance to this revived form: This hood was also a part of the garb of monks in that era. The Medieval hood, in some cases, also had what is known as a "liripipe," a long tail hanging from the back of a hood. You can see the modern stylized version of this on my own hood. From an article on "Academic hood development" we read that "By 1463 the favourite dress of doctors was the hood with round bell-shaped cape, and the lir...
Read more

Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed

Image
According to a recent documentary, for all the talk about academic freedom in the world of the large American university system, it would seem that it extends only as far as the system defines it - especially with regards to the subject of origins and science. Noted speechwriter Ben Stein stars as host of the film Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed. Dr. Angus Menuge, professor of philosophy at CUW, highlights the film in an article included in the Concordia University - Wisconsin magazine Concordian , including some seemingly revealing details about the expulsion of talented scientists who apparently were ‘expelled‘ from their positions for mentioning the theory of Intelligent Design: “In the current climate, even when academicians have a relevant doctorate and a track-record of peer-reviewed publication, their careers suffer if they argue that the scientific evidence points to an intelligent source involved in the creation of the world. In 1992, Dean Kenyon, a biology professor at ...
Read more