Faithful patriotism recognizes the sanctuary is for God alone
Guest Commentary by Bishop Gretchen Rehberg
On July 1, I put up the U.S. flag on our pole at the front of the house in anticipation of the celebration of Independence Day. I regularly put the flag up for a number of our national holidays during the year. I consider myself a patriot, loving this country and giving thanks that I was born here.
I have also lived abroad, working in Switzerland all of 1991, and learned that other nations are also beautiful places with long and great traditions full of citizens who love their country. I came back from living abroad renewed in my love of this nation and more humble about my assumptions about other nations. I believe that travel is one of the best things we can do to open and widen our perspectives.
I have served my communities as a volunteer fire fighter/EMT for over 20 years, and when I found I no longer could do that work, I served at a free health clinic for 11 years. I believe in community service and giving back. I love this country and have always found ways to offer service to it.
What I do not believe is that our nation’s flag should be in our places of worship. As we celebrate this nation’s independence this month, and quite properly give thanks for the freedoms we celebrate as citizens of it, as Christians we must remember that our allegiance cannot simply be to a nation, or to its flag.
It is not because we are unpatriotic. Quite the opposite. We are called to pray for our leaders, to seek the well-being of our communities, to work tirelessly for justice and peace. The Episcopal Church has a long history of civic engagement and public witness.
However, when it comes to our worship space the focus needs to be solely on God. Our worship space is sacred space. Everything in it, the font, the cross, the altar, points to God’s presence with us, and God’s promise to us. When we gather together around the altar, we are gathering as citizens of something far older and more enduring than any nation: the kingdom of God. Our baptism gives us a new identity that transcends all earthly boundaries. This does not erase our national identity but puts it in its proper place — secondary to our primary identity as followers of Jesus.
When we have symbols of nationhood such as a flag in the space, especially if close to the altar, it can blur the lines between civic loyalty and divine worship. Having a national flag in the worship space can unintentionally suggest that our allegiance to our country is equal to our allegiance to God, or even that our church endorses the actions of a particular government.
That is not the message of the gospel. In fact, our loyalty to God sometimes calls us to challenge the powers and rulers of our nation, to be the moral voice in our land. The church must be clear in its witness that the love of God extends beyond national borders and that the community gathered around the altar is global, diverse and reconciled.
Removing flags from our worship space is not an act of disrespect to our country; it is rather a deep act of theological integrity. It asserts that our primary citizenship is in heaven and that our worship must remain solely focused on God. Flags may have an appropriate place in other parts of the building, but the sanctuary, the place where we meet God in Word and Sacrament, needs to remain unambiguous in its proclamation that Christ alone is Lord.
I am not issuing a directive that all congregations must remove any flags, but I am urging all congregations that still have national flags in the worship space to have conversations about these words, to wrestle with why the flag is there at all and to consider moving them to another location.
If this raises questions for you, or you would like to have a conversation about it, I am more than willing to be in conversation with you or with a congregation. The beauty of the tradition of the Episcopal Church is that it invites reflection, dialogue and shared discernment. We are always growing deeper in our life together in Christ.
The views expressed in this opinion column are those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect the views of FāVS News. FāVS News values diverse perspectives and thoughtful analysis on matters of faith and spirituality.
So much amen to this! I’m a Catholic. We have the U.S. flag and the Keys of St. Peter flag in our sanctuary (off to the side, but still). The Church is eight times older than the U.S. and, as Christ told us, the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. It’s timeless and everlasting. I hope America is around for another 250 years, but I also know that it, too, will fall just like all empires of the past and that’s okay because my primary citizenship is in Heaven. I’m just visiting America for a spell of 80 years or so.
The flag actually wasn’t introduced into most congregations until WWII, when it was first placed outside the sanctuary next to a book for people to write down prayers for our service members. Somehow, over time, it’s slowly migrated into far too many sanctuaries and, sadly, I fear too many Christian Americans have fallen to the heresy of Americanism, worshiping our nation alongside our God.