![[Evangelic-Lutheran Church, Germany]](../images/r/rel-elkd.gif)
by Dieter Linder, 7 June 1997
Last modified: 2006-03-11 by martin karner
Keywords: lutheran | christian | protestant |
Links: FOTW homepage |
search |
disclaimer and copyright |
write us |
mirrors
On this page:
See also:
The Lutheran Church in the United States also uses the Christian Flag.
Eric Martin, 4 June 1997
by Dieter Linder, 7 June 1997
In Germany flags are only shown *in front of* religious buildings, but not *in* churches. It would be very, very unusual for a German to see the national flag in his church.
There are two religious flags to be seen very often on Sundays or religious holidays in front of churches: the flag of the Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche in Deutschland (EKD) and of the Römisch-Katholische Kirche. These are the two dominating denominations, the Evangelic-Lutherans running up to 35,7 % and the Roman Catholics to 34,7 %.
The flag of the EKD is white with a violet Latin cross all over. However, the
cross does not touch the edges.
Dieter Linder, 7 June 1997
by
Marcus Schmöger, 15 August 1997
From June 18th to June 22th 1997 the Evangelic-Lutheran Church in Germany had
its Church Convention (Kirchentag) in Leipzig. Such a Kirchentag is the
opportunity for all people, belonging to this church or not, to present
themselves. Flags were prominently displayed in Leipzig. At the fairground there
were about 50 flagpoles with the flag of the Evangelic Church (vertical flag;
purple Scandinavian cross on white). The emblem of the Kirchentag itself is a
simple Greek cross with a smaller Greek cross in each of the four corners. This
was shown on flags as well. The size and the colours differed a lot, so I post
four of the variants I have seen. All of them were displayed hanging from the
top of a fairground hall.
Marcus Schmöger, 15 August 1997
The flag of the largest Lutheran denomination in the US, the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America, can be seen at http://www.scsw-elca.org/india_pictures.htm,
although the prominent spelling mistakes probably make this an "unofficial
variant" being used locally in India!
Ned Smith, 22 August 2004
The flag of the Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod is emblazoned: The church's
logo--a stylized cross--in burgundy on a white field with burgundy stripes in
the fly. An image of the flag can be seen at Concordia
Publishing House's Web site.
Peter Guerin, 25 July 2004
The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod is the second largest Lutheran
denomination in the US. The largest is the Evangelical
Lutheran Church.
Ned Smith, 22 August 2004
The flag shown in the pictures in India wasn't produced in America. I browsed
the site and found that the donator of the flag, NELC, is the Northern
Evangelical Lutheran Church in India (so the spelling errors are more
understandable). It thus may well be a unique specimen.
Martin Karner,
23 Augst 2004
The Lutheran Church-Canada has a somewhat similar flag to that of the Missouri
Synod. The Church's
homepage says that it developed from Canadian congregations of the Lutheran
Church-Missouri Synod, and still retains close ties with it, so it isn't
surprising that there is some similarity between their flags. Both have a doubly
silhouetted cross and thin vertical stripes, but whereas the LC-MS's flag has
the cross and stripes in burgundy, and the stripes at the hoist, the LC-C's has
the cross and stripes in blue, and the stripes not as close to the hoist (note:
I am judging that the linked picture of the LC-MS flag is displaying its hoist
to the viewer's right) . There are also a few subtle differences between the
shapes of the crosses.
Ned Smith, 22 August 2004