The American Flag

For Memorial Day my parents put up the American flag in on the flag pole that is attached to their house. My very curious four year old upon seeing it asked what that flag meant and why it was put on the house. I explained as simply that I could that Men and Women fought and still fight for us that we can have everything that we have.  I told him that the flag was to remind us that we live in a country where we have freedom. This satisfied his curiosity, yet the very next day he asked the same question.  I gave to him the same response.  Several days later he again asked the same question.  I was stressed out and in a hurry that I responded that he already knew the answer and that he should tell me what it meant.  I saw the thoughts in his head spinning as he had his thinking face on.  He then responded, “Oh, I remember! It is the Title of Liberty.” His answer surprised me greatly as obviously that wasn’t the definition I gave him yet I was very impressed as one of my favorite stories found in the Book of Mormon is that of Captain Moroni.  “Moroni, in response to dissensions within his own nation, rent his coat and wrote upon it, making of it a memorial to God, their religion, their freedoms, and their families, and then fastened it upon the end of a pole. ‘He went forth among the people, waving the rent part of his garment in the air, that all might see the writing which he had written upon the rent part, and crying with a loud voice saying: Behold, whosoever will maintain this title upon the land, let them come forth in the strength of the Lord, and enter into covenant that they will maintain their rights, and their religion, that the Lord God may bless them’” (Alma 46:19-20)

I have obviously shared this story with my son before but was astounded that my four year old could not only remember this story, but to also make the connection. I replied that he was very right and that the American flag is in fact a title of liberty. Astounded and impressed I shared this experience with my friend.  She admitted that she too was impressed but due to her experiences as an Army wife and with a distaste in her mouth from the current political situations she said she had a hard time seeing the American flag as such a title.  I very much agree with her statement in the fact that I too am not happy with the state of our country. I could write pages about all the corrupt aspects, how we have less and less freedom, and how people no longer challenge what they are told through experience or knowledge, but blindly accept politicians, regulations and other implementations.  I reminded her however that while the flag is a visual representation of our country, it is more so a representation of what we believe and the liberties we want and enjoy and that should our nation ever get to a state of dictatorship the flag would in no way represent that, rather it would still represent its original statutes of liberty. I then shared this: “Responding to Moroni’s challenge, many came forth ‘rending their garments in token, or as a covenant, that they would not forsake the Lord their God,’ and that they would not transgress his holy laws, nor would they be ashamed to take upon them the name of Christ, for should they do so, ‘the Lord should rend them even as they had rent their garments.’” (Alma 46:21-27)

Basically, the flag, our flag stands for the freedoms and beliefs each individual holds and has the freedom to enjoy and should those liberties be threatened we would respond in arms like Captain Moroni and his faithful countrymen to rid our country of such a threat. There is a lot of deep doctrine here that I don’t feel inspired or impressed to go into, but let me close in saying this: The most important law is God’s law, which we can reduce even in its simplest forms to the first two commandments. Let me paraphrase: 1. Love the Lord God with all your heart and 2. Love thy neighbor as yourself. If everyone alive loved their God (their standards beliefs etc) and treated every person the same way they treated their self then all violence, crime and every other disagreement would be completely irradiated.   Yet, should this right to worship as we believe, them like Moroni, we should arm ourselves for such rights. My belief in God is strong. I bear testimony that the Book of Mormon is the word of God, given to his prophets as is the Bible.  I am blessed and proud of my children who retain the stories I teach them and who then teach me.  Know your freedoms.  Know your beliefs and hold them dear.  Understand at what cost they were given to you and at what cost you would pay for them.