KEEP THE UNION FLAG FLYING
IN HIS keynote speech to the Fabian Society’s “Future of Britishness” Conference in January this year, the Chancellor of the Exchequer (Gordon Brown M.P) called for all the Queen’s Subjects to embrace the Union Flag.
At the outset let me say that I am no fan or friend of Gordon Brown: the man widely tipped to succeed Tony Blair as Leader of the Labour Party and, quite possibly, as British Prime Minister in the next two or three years. Brown, like Blair, has been party to destroying much of what I consider to be our unique British culture and heritage by, for example, (i). enacting the 1998 Human Rights Act (incorporating the European Convention on Human Rights into U.K.domestic law) which has often upheld the rights of criminals and terrorists to the detriment of their victims’ rights; (ii). undermined the hereditary principle of the monarchy by annulling the right of all but a remnant of hereditary peers to sit and vote in the House of Lords; (iii). weakened the legislative union by establishing the Scottish Parliament, Welsh Assembly and the Northern Ireland Assembly (rather than allowing the United Kingdom Parliament to continue legislating for the U.K. as a whole and concentrating on devolving solely the power to execute and apply legislation to locally-elected representatives in the component parts of the Kingdom); and (iv). introducing far reaching changes to policing, criminal justice, local government and public administration in Northern Ireland as a result of provisions made in, and since, the signing of the Good Friday Agreement.
So what does embracing the Union Flag mean to me? In an age when, to many, it would appear that the world is becoming smaller – via faster and quicker communications (e.g, mobile phones and the internet) to say nothing of the ongoing efforts either to take Northern Ireland out of the United Kingdom and into an All-Ireland Republic or surrender our national sovereignty to the European Union – it is little wonder that the Union Flag itself is under attack from all who claim it to be an obstacle to global unity and lasting peace.
Alas our enemies, more than many of our fellow countrymen it would appear, seem to understand that the Union Flag is no ordinary flag: it has a profound Biblical significance and is the banner of God’s Covenant People: Israel-Britain.
The Union Flag is a combination of the Cross of St George, Patron Saint of England (a red cross on a white background), the Cross of St Andrew, Patron Saint of Scotland (a white diagonal cross on a blue background), and the Cross of St Patrick, Patron Saint of Ireland (a red diagonal cross on a white background). The Union Flag was first introduced four hundred years ago – in 1606- after the Union of the Kingdoms of England and Scotland under one sovereign. The Cross of St Patrick was added in 1801 after the Act of Union of Great Britain and Ireland, whilst it is believed that the Cross of St Patrick – as it is currently depicted on the Union Flag -was not broken until the secession of what was then called the Irish Free State (now the Republic of Ireland) from the Union of Great Britain and Ireland in 1920: the breaking of St Patrick’s Cross representing, politically, the fracturing of the legislative union of England, Scotland and Ireland.
Each of the three crosses on the Union Flag has a spiritual significance. The Cross of St George – the flag which flew over the Golden Hind when Sir Francis Drake defeated the Spanish Armada in 1588 reminds us that God is with us and will deliver us from our enemies if we put our trust in Him, just as the bloodstained cross at Calvary is a reminder of deliverance from sin for all who accept the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Saviour.
The saltire Cross of St Andrew is not unlike a multiplication sign which reminds us of God’s promises to our forefathers (Abraham, Issac and Jacob) that He would multiply their seed and that Israel (i.e., Britain) would become a “great” nation and company of nations if we kept His commandments; hence the Union of the United Kingdom of “Great” Britain and Northern Ireland, and the rise of what was the British Empire (now the British Commonwealth), established by indigenous Britons taking with them the infallible Word of God to the four corners of the earth.
The broken Cross of St Patrick is a reminder of our current pitiful state of affairs: of how we – individually and nationally – have broken our covenant relationship with Almighty God, by sinning against Him, which has separated us from our union with Christ.
The three colours on the Union Flag, likewise, have a spiritual significance. Red reminds us that whilst our sins are crimson/scarlet, without the shedding of Christ’s precious blood on Calvary’s cross – as atonement for our sins – there is no remission for our transgressions. White reminds us of the holiness and purity of Almighty God, to whom His Covenant People are drawn by the irresistible grace of the Holy Spirit. Blue reminds us of our Heavenly origin and destiny of the British race/Israel people.Taken together, the Red, White and Blue of the Union Flag remind us of the tabernacle where our forefathers worshipped God on their way from Egypt to Canaan and in which the tables of stone bearing the Ten Commandments were kept, as the frame of the tent was draped in red, white and blue coverings; as such, our Union Flag reminds us that, individually and nationally, we need to (i). accept and proclaim the Reformed Faith; (ii). live our lives according to God’s Commandments; and (iii). keep ourselves a pure and holy people under the LORD Our God. This means earnestly contending for the faith once delivered to the saints and opposing political and spiritual union with the heathen. One therefore commends Andrew Rosindell M.P.for tabling Early Day Motion 1986 in the House of Commons,
“That this House celebrates the rich 400 year history of the Union Flag, originally adopted on 12th April 1606 by James I, uniting the countries of England and Scotland through a combination of the St. George’s and St Andrew’s Crosses, before the Cross of St Patrick was later added in 1801, completing the modern version of the Union Flag; notes the importance of the flag as a sign of British strength and unity around the world, bringing together all British people under one common attachment to a shared heritage and identity; acknowledges the sustained presence of the Union Flag within the flags of Australia, New Zealand, Tuvalu, Fiji and the UK Overseas Territories, where British values and traditions are still central to everyday life; and looks forward to the Union Flag continuing being flown with pride for centuries to come”,
and implores you to write to your M.P.at the House of Commons, Westminster, London, SW1A 0AA, to urge him/her to sign it.
In short, in this the 400th anniversary of the initial flying of the Union Flag, I pray that each of us will renew our loyalty to the Union of the United Kingdom and, more importantly, dedicate our lives to maintaining the more important and lasting union: the union between God and Man, through sustaining and strengthening a personal relationship with Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
CHRISTOPHER LUKE is Founder-Editor, Unionist (a bi-monthly newsletter of current affairs affecting the U.K. written from a traditional unionist perspective) and a Member of William Alexander Memorial Loyal Orange Lodge No. 1689 (London). For a sample copy of Unionist and subscription details, please either write to Christopher Luke, Flat 5 Kirkdale House, Kirkdale Road, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN1 2SB enclosing an SAE or e-mail him at unionist1603@tesco.net.
