#5. The Unwaved Flag in Churches—Benjamin Nickodemus

Benjamin Nickodemus gave a paper on an observation a European immigrant to the United States who experienced culture shock in many of the US Churches he visited.  The shocking element was the placement of the US flag near the holy of holy altars.  Not all churches in the US have flags in the church, but many set it on one of the flanking sides.  Although the US may pride herself on separation of the state and church, many churches are actively pro-inclusive to include symbols of the state in their church.

Nickodemus pointed out that many churches also fly the church flag along side the US flag, which is a white field with a blue canton and red cross.  However, Catholic Churches do not fly the 'protestant' Christian flag, instead they sometimes fly the Vatican flag, which is usually nowhere near the holy of holy altars.

Although the US promotes the separation of Church and State it may seem peculiar to some, that highest symbol of the state would be in a Church.  On the other hand, the use of Christian imagery within the state is ever so present.  Many legislative leaders are sworn in upon the Bible, likewise Christmas is a recognized Federal holiday.  Also note, US federal government does not recognize any Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Shinto or Native American Religious Holiday—only Christian Holidays.