One World Under God

Let’s start off with an inflammatory bang: I don’t want the U.S. flag inside the sanctuary of my church. I know. I hear the resounding gasp.

I hope you will stick around long enough for me to explain, but just in case you don’t, please know that I respect your opinion too. I respect your inherent freedom to believe whatever you want. I mean, illogical opinions drive me a little batty, but fact-based opinions? I’m a big fan—even when I don’t agree. And I pride myself on being a peacemaker. Truly, I really do. I love being able to see and understand both sides of an issue, so before you jump all over me, hang in there long enough to see how I formed this relatively recent opinion.

“One nation under God” does not mean “one God for one nation.” One nation under God clearly puts God in charge, above the nation. But that does not mean God is American. Christianity is not American. Even my beloved Episcopal Church is not American. The Episcopal Church has churches way beyond the borders of the United States and on into Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Venezuela, Curacao, Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Haiti, Honduras, Micronesia, and Taiwan. And my church family is even bigger than that. We Episcopalians are part of the Anglican Communion. You know how many countries are in that Anglican Communion? More than 160. You know the most beautiful thing about my church? When I go to church, there are countless throngs of other people around the world using the same prayer book, the same prayers, the same worship service, the same Bible readings on the same day. I think that’s pretty great.

I live in the Unites States of America, a country formed by man-made borders. But God sees no borders, no nationality, no limits. God sees one body, one people, one human race. Galatians 3:28 tells us, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” And I love that my church reaches out around the world and blurs those man-made borders we call nations. Heck, we North Americans aren’t even the only Americans. My Ecuadorean friends are American too—South American, but American nonetheless. See how the lines start to get fuzzy?

“A Christian church has absolutely no business displaying a national flag in the sanctuary, at least not as it is commonly done,” said Douglas Wilson, a pastor at Christ Church in Moscow, Idaho. “The church born at Pentecost was a reversal of Babel, not a doubling down on the fragmentation of Babel.”

I can hear many of you mumbling, “But you live in a country founded on Christian values.” Well, not really. According to the Preamble of the Constitution, our country was created to “form a more perfect union.” Our colonists crossed an ocean to gain religious freedom. However, it was about more than that. They wanted to protect their rights. They wanted to live in a country that would allow them to freely practice their faith. For them, “a more perfect union” meant a limited government created for the people and by the people.

“Our nation’s separation of church and state did not intend to keep the church out of the state but rather to keep the state out of the church,” says Robert Williamson, chairman of the House of Flags Museum in Columbus, NC. (Disclaimer: He’s my dad.) “The Church of England drove the multitudes to our shores with the hope of being able to worship in the church of their choice, not that of the state’s choice—or to not worship any god at all if that be their choice.”

You see, the United States was founded on human rights, not on the right to be a Christian. Even President John Adams agreed way back in 1797: “The Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion.” Put on a set of fresh eyes and look at our Declaration of Independence. It tells us certain things are indisputable (“self-evident”) and impossible to take away (“unalienable”): “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” Those indisputable, untakeawayable rights, freely given by our creator, are for all humans—all of us, not just United States of Americans and not just Christians. Our country’s founders knew that basic human rights are not given by government, and they are not acquired by force. Our lives, our freedoms, and our right to pursue a happy journey in our short time here are inherent gifts given to us by our Creator. And despite what some people might read between the lines, our country’s founding documents do not say those rights came from Jesus Christ. It says “endowed by their Creator.” I’m guessing most people would agree—Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs .... These are human rights, not Christian rights.

By not much more than a stroke of luck, I was born in the United States, and until ... oh, maybe mid-2016, I was proud of this country. Here, we are promised religious and many other freedoms. Countless people around the world have those freedoms taken away from them every single day. In the United States, we are all—every last Christian, Jew, Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, atheist, agnostic one of us—free to worship the god of our own understanding or, if we so choose, to not worship at all. That’s how liberty is defined: “the state or condition of people who are able to act and speak freely.”

“There is nothing wrong with not having our nation’s flag in a church. It is clearly a personal—and sometimes an emotional—choice,” Williamson says. Yes, as I have explored this topic, I have learned that it is a very emotional choice. And like I said at the beginning, I respect your choice to believe whatever you want.

Underneath all of this lies one question, and it’s not about the purpose of our flag. The question is what is the purpose of a Christian church? To answer that question, look at the founding document of the faith. According to the Bible, the purpose of the church is to worship God (Luke 4:8 and John 4:23), study God’s word (2 Timothy 2:15 and 1 Corinthians 4:6), pray (Acts 2:42), love one another (John 13:35 and Philippians 1:1-4), help each other (Galatians 6:2), learn how to live as godly people (Titus 2:11-12), and to equip ourselves to show the world that God is pretty darn great (Ephesians 4:12 and Matthew 28:18-20).

So, given that definition, what is the purpose of displaying a U.S. flag in church? I don’t go to church to think about being American. I don’t go to think about us United States of Americans versus all you other people. I go to worship God, study the Bible, pray, love, offer my support, learn how to be a better person, and become a better disciple. I go to surround myself with people who not only love our creator but love me and my family. Heck, they are my family, not only here but all around the world. A few years ago when I first set foot in Cristo Liberador, an Episcopal church in Quito, Ecuador, I might not have spoken Spanish, but I knew the words they were saying. I know that prayer book, and I know that Bible. And I knew they loved me from the moment I walked in the door on that narrow alley on the other half of the world. You see, we are all one family. One world, under one God, with liberty and justice for all.

Stay tuned for more inflammatory ramblings from The Book I'll Never Write.