THE flag of St George is a logo of “unity” and “inclusion” and “can’t be owned by anyone group or cause”, a bunch of seven bishops has said in an announcement to mark Racial Justice Sunday (8 February).
The statement was issued by the Church of England Bishops’ Working Group for Promoting Unity in our Nation, which was arrange late last yr by the Archbishops of Canterbury and York in response to concerns concerning the use of Christian symbols by far-Right pressure groups (Features, 6 February). The group is developing resources to assist churches to rejoice St George’s Day (23 April).
The group is chaired by the Bishop of Leicester, the Rt Revd Martyn Snow, and its other members are: the Bishop of Kirkstall, the Rt Revd Arun Arora; the Bishop of Barking, the Rt Revd Lynne Cullens; the Bishop of Bradford, Dr Toby Howarth; the Bishop of Croydon, Dr Rosemarie Mallett; the Bishop of Willesden, the Rt Revd Lusa Nsenga-Ngoy; and the Bishop of Birmingham, Dr Michael Volland.
The statement acknowledges that “many in our communities are concerned by each the perceptions and realities of the problems of migration,” and calls for “mature debate on the various impacts of immigration (recognising that we cannot have unregulated borders). Alongside this we consider that our country must remain welcoming to those that are genuinely fleeing war or persecution.”
The Bishops say that they “reject using Christian symbols by those that seek to make use of them to intimidate others”, and so they lament that, in recent months, “now we have seen these symbols utilized by individuals who, removed from working for unity within the nation, are searching for to sow division and misunderstanding.”
The statement continues: “We rejoice that the flag of St George is the national flag of England and incorporates a cross as an indication of our Christian heritage. This heritage needs to be celebrated. However, the flag can’t be owned by anyone group or cause. Rather it’s a logo of unity, inclusion and our common life around which all of us gather.
“Our engagement with our neighbours of various faiths suggests that the overwhelming majority accept this as our heritage and need to unite behind the flag as a logo of national unity and inclusion, based on our Christian heritage and broader values of respect, compassion and take care of all.”
The Bishops call for greater understanding of “the true significance of the cross of Jesus Christ”, arguing that “there may be little point in claiming it as a heritage if we don’t understand its meaning. . .
“Only in this manner can we be sure that using Christian symbols in public demonstrations works for unity and never disunity.”
