Flags and Symbols

One hundred years ago, in the days when the Annual Conference was held in February, the centenary of New Zealand Methodism was celebrated - as will be the case this year - in Tai Tokerau. The Minutes of that Conference even contained a letter of greeting to the Methodist Church of New Zealand from the Whangaroa County Council, signed by its Chairman Joseph Solloway Lane, himself a staunch Methodist. In the Conference Minutes that letter was preceded by a Loyal Address to King George V, which spoke of ‘the many great and exalted privileges we enjoy under your reign.’ I was provoked into searching for this record by the recent euphoria of Queen Elizabeth II’s ‘platinum jubilee,’ and to wonder what place such loyalty has in our secular world.

Until relatively recently the concept of royalty was taken for granted. So long as the Hebrew scriptures were accepted as essential to our upbringing and our understanding of the nature of human society, kingship was part of our language. In western society the slow demise of monarchy began with the French Revolution. And what we have witnessed on television over the past fortnight is now, in a real sense, limited to just one nation. Our links with the United Kingdom are real enough, but the voice of rejection grows louder. Ultimately, of course, the decisions will be made on this side of the world.

This contribution is in no way a defence of traditional monarchy. But it seems that for many people there is a need for a symbol that captures the spirit of their land and its people. Take our flag for instance – starting with the Union Jack, modified by the addition of the Southern Cross – and we couldn’t even agree with our Australian neighbours on this. Flags flying are an obvious sign – and our current continuing discussion shows how important flags are. But are we any nearer a consensus – except that we have narrowed our search to something that is indigenous – from kiwi to koru and beyond. What we call ourselves in easy conversation may not necessarily be enough to capture our spirit and our aspirations on a symbol like a flag.

What sort of symbol captures the spirit of a people? Quite obviously one answer is the cross. An empty cross is not just two strokes of the pen, but a constant reminder, and challenge, to recall the crucifixion. It was the bitterness of that memory that prevented the cross bearing commonly used for at least two centuries after the death of Jesus. Methodism doesn’t really have a commonly accepted symbol, though the scallop shell was popular for a time. It came from the coat of arms of Wesley’s family connection, the Wellesleys, and it carried the memory of the pilgrim.

What sort of symbol might capture the spirit of the people of this land? ‘Religion’ is not a word I so often use these days – largely because it retains, in its roots, the concept of being ‘bound’ together, of being bound to do this or that, the idea of bondage, of compulsion. But what is it that binds us, tangata whenua, western European, and pasifika, in particular? Is there something that is different about us - not to glory in, not to make us exclusive - but something to share. What have we to share that others might want, or need? Is there a symbol for whanau, for example, that would make sense on a flag?