“Flag, a piece of cloth, bunting, or similar material displaying the insignia of a sovereign state, a community, an organization, an armed force, an office, or an individual.”
“Flags recognizable as such were almost certainly the invention of the ancient peoples of the Indian subcontinent or what is now China. It is said that the founder of the Zhou dynasty in China (1046–256 BCE) had a white flag carried before him, and it is known that in 660 CE a minor prince was punished for failing to lower his standard before his superior.”
“The colours and designs of national flags usually are not arbitrarily selected but rather stem from the history, culture, or religion of the particular country.”
The Stars and Stripes of the United States of America represent the principles around which the “We, the People…” of the country conduct our government. We stand to honor our principles when the flag is raised. We pledge our allegiance not to a flag, but to those principles that provide us the freedoms to conduct our lives. The Preamble to our Constitution summarizes those principles.
“We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”2
Are these principles perfectly implemented in our society? They are not. Principles are ideals we strive to live by. However, we are human, and humans err, typically more so when their emotions affect and interfere with our judgement.
Are these still the principles we desire to live by? Another principled document answers this question. “‘Lord, to whom can we go?”3 The ‘experiment’ of a government run by the People is two-hundred forty-four years on and continues currently in turmoil. Yet, around the world this same experiment is looked to and longed for as the best hope for people to live their own dreams and determine their own destiny. People cross deserts in the heat of summer, pay to stow away in cargo containers and have themselves shipped into its borders, apply by the thousands for visas of any sort that will allow them to come and work and study and live under these principles. There are people who volunteer to defend these principles from all enemies, foreign and domestic, placing their lives at the will of the People they come from. Yes, it is apparent these principles are still something for which people will “mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.”4
“The flag was the first object of attack in battle, and its fall would mean confusion if not defeat.”1
I am aware that in my lifetime it has become acceptable, and recently even preferable, to deface and dishonor the Stars and Stripes. Artists design their works such that observers are encouraged to stand on our flag. It is popular to burn our flag publicly, both by foreign protestors decrying our international policies and by domestic protestors who claim we have failed to live up to our principles. Foreigners insult us and entreat us to battles. Domestic protestors dishonor us all by their actions, including themselves. The fervor for their cause blinds them to the insults they perpetrate upon us all.
Kneeling is a current, non-destructive method of protest. Rather than stand to honor our principles, kneeling before it is a reverent act, one that both honors the principles and argues the effectiveness of our collective efforts to implement them.
Imperfect we are. Still, the iconic pictures of the flag flying in New York harbor at the Statue of Liberty, the Iwo Jima image recalled from Mt. Suribachi from the Pacific in World War II, and the post 9/11 photo from the middle of the World Trade Center rubble are meant to stir within each of us some sense of the desire for people world-wide and within our own consciences to fight to live for those principles enshrined in our Constitution. For this reason, each of us should pledge allegiance to those principles before our public actions, whether we intend to defend those principles or to protest the failures to carry them out.
“”I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”5
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Flag”. Encyclopædia Britannica; Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., October 10, 2019. https://www.britannica.com/topic/flag-heraldry. Access Date: July 22, 2020
- “Constitution of the United States of America.” Published on-line by the Independence Hall Association; Philadelphia. www.ushistory.org. 1999-2020. Accessed July 22, 2020.
- Jn 6:68. “Gospel of John”. New Revised Standard Edition. New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Catholic Edition, on-line. www.biblegateway.com. 1989, 1993, 1995. Accessed July 22, 2020.
- “Declaration of Independence”. Published on-line by the Independence Hall Association; Philadelphia. http://www.ushistory.org. 1999-2020. Accessed July 22, 2020.
- ‘The Pledge of Allegiance”. Published on-line by the Independence Hall Association; Philadelphia. http://www.ushistory.org. 1999-2020. Accessed July 22, 2020.
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