Why no USA flag in Catholic Church?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Angainor
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WhiteDove:
We have a flag outside of the church. I really dislike the idea of having one inside the church. I thought that was a Protestant thing. The church should be universal, not nationalistic.

I wonder if other countires display their flag inside of the Catholic Churches? I somehow doubt it, since Americans are much more flag crazy than other countries, I’ve noticed. The display of the American flag is commonplace to the point of losing it’s meaning.
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We don’t have any flags in our Catholic churches here. It’s not unusual to see flags in a protestant church though, particularly Church of Scotland.

I agree with you WhiteDove, I don’t think a church is a place for flags. I’m not even sure that the Vatican flag should be seen (although I’ve NEVER seen it here anyway)

Peace,

Vince
 
We have a American Flag on one side of the church and a Papal Flag on the other side.
 
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WhiteDove:
We have a flag outside of the church. I really dislike the idea of having one inside the church. I thought that was a Protestant thing. The church should be universal, not nationalistic.

I wonder if other countires display their flag inside of the Catholic Churches? I somehow doubt it, since Americans are much more flag crazy than other countries, I’ve noticed. The display of the American flag is commonplace to the point of losing it’s meaning.
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I don’t know of any other country where one would even think about the display of a flag in a Catholic church.
The Church is universal, and national symbols just are displaced in a church.
Just think a bit about it:
A Catholic church during the 1930s in Germany with a swastika flag at the altar? Or one in East Germany in the 1980s with the communist flag displayed at the altar?
No way, national symbols have to be kept out of the universal Chuch.

Werner
 
We don’t have any flags in our Catholic churches here. It’s not unusual to see flags in a protestant church though, particularly Church of Scotland.
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Vincent, I believe it to be almost the same in England. There is no need for flags in Catholic Churches, but the Protestant churches in England (mainly Anglican) do not appear to have flags either. I would imagine this is an American thing. I understand that many Americans fly their flags regularly whereas British people do not. I do not understand the importance of flags (one of those cultural differences;) ) and as such would not understand their significance in a church. Maybe someone who flies their flag could let me know the symbolism behind the gesture…?
 
I don’t know of any other country where one would even think about the display of a flag in a Catholic church. The Church is universal, and national symbols just are displaced in a church. Just think a bit about it: A Catholic church during the 1930s in Germany with a swastika flag at the altar? Or one in East Germany in the 1980s with the communist flag displayed at the altar? No way, national symbols have to be kept out of the universal Chuch
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:bowdown: Thanks you very much for saying this! I completely agree!
 
Turning the question around a bit, I wonder what Protestants would think about having American flags printed in their bibles?
 
Just a thought - are there any churches out there which fly the Vatican Flag only?

I’m wondering if it has been placed in churches which choose to fly the US flag to ‘counterbalance’ it. Sorry I can’t think of a better choice of word.

As a secondary question - do people who are fond of the flag in the US tend to be catholics? I don’t mean to generalise though…

Might seem a bit of a weird question but as teresas1979 points out, it’s not a big thing in the UK, there’s a big cultural difference over here. Also, the British Union flag doesn’t exactly have positive connotations these days.

Peace

Vince
 
This is odd since the Union flag as well as its composite national flags are crosses.

But yes it is a cultural thing

A buddy of mine is British and he told me that the only time he remembers seeing the union flag flown by private citizens was when Churchill died.

I remember hearing that (an correct me if I’ve wrong) but in India only certain government officials could fly the national flag. It was illegal for others.

Very strange

I worked for years in Philadelphia (sort of the place where it all began over here) my office was right next to Independence Hall and the flag was everywhere.
 
Is it the United States Catholic Church or the Catholic Church in the United States?

Am I an American Catholic or a Catholic American?

Think about these.

Do the flags in the church really say that this is the U.S Catholic Church or do they simply say that this is the Catholic Church in the U.S.? It is the laws of this country that give us not the right but the freedom to worship as we wish.
 
Flags in a church are completely out of place, I believe. The Kingdom of God transcends the states of man.

With all due respect, I think American Catholic Churches that have American flags are taking cues from American Protestantism. I am not American, but if I were, I would certainly remain loyal to the Church above and beyond my earthly country.

Recall that St. Paul reminds us in Phi. 3:20 that our citizenship is in heaven.

In Christ,
Tyler
 
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Angainor:
I will state my idea on the matter which may be a Protestant misconception. Correct me if it is.

It is my understanding that the United States flag is banned from the inner church itself (I’m not sure what you call the inner church. Is that the sanctuary?). It is also my understanding that this is because the authority of the United States is not recognized in that area. I think of it as Catholics viewing the santuary as a little piece of Rome where only the Vatican has true authority.
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We have a US Flag in ours.
 
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VociMike:
Turning the question around a bit, I wonder what Protestants would think about having American flags printed in their bibles?
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The Protestant Church I attend now does not have a US flag inside or outside the building. I just feel more comfortable with it like that. Come to think of it, I really don’t see many churches around here that sport a US flag outside the Church. Maybe it’s just a regional thing?
 
We worship God alone! Not the dirt on which we stand.

During my protestant youth, I remember there were two flags on each altar; an American and a “christian” flag. The “christian” flag was white with a huge red cross in the center; looked more like a Red Cross flag outside a M.A.S.H. unit. This was in every prot church I attended.
 
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