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The Cross and Flame: The United Methodist Symbol
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The history and significance of the Cross and Flame emblem are as rich and diverse as The United Methodist Church. The insignia’s birth quickly followed the union of two denominations in 1968: The Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church.
Following more than two dozen conceptualizations, a traditional symbol—the cross—was linked with a single flame with dual tongues of fire. The resulting insignia is rich in meaning. It relates The United Methodist church to God through Christ (cross) and the Holy Spirit (flame). The flame is a reminder of Pentecost when witnesses were unified by the power of the Holy Spirit and saw "tongues, as of fire" (Acts 2:3).
The elements of the emblem also remind us of a transforming moment in the life of Methodism’s founder, John Wesley, when he sensed God’s presence and felt his heart "strangely warmed." The two tongues of a single flame may also be understood to represent the union of two denominations.
Cross and Flame Declare Who We Are
By the Rev. Phil Blackwell
Conference Program Officer
A few weeks ago I had the privilege of preaching at The Living Well UMC in Gurnee, Illinois. It is a new congregation founded under the leadership of the Rev. David Newhouse and is located across the street from the entrance to Great America. (And you thought you had competition on Sunday mornings!) [Great America is the largest amusement park in the state – ed.]
That day the congregation was dedicating a huge Cross and Flame symbol, the logo of The United Methodist Church. It now hangs on the front of the church, which is a former hardware store in a shopping mall, and announces to all who The Living Well UMC is and what its members profess.
Who are we and what do we say with our Cross and Flame? The cross represents the presence of Christ; the flame represents the power of the Holy Spirit. Taken together, they depict the activity of God in our lives, what God does for us in Christ – what John Wesley called “ justifying grace” – and what God does in us through the work of the Holy Spirit – what Wesley termed “sanctifying grace.”
The cross has been the central image for Christianity for 2000 years, yet some today have removed it from the sanctuary: “Oh, we don’t want to put a cross here because it only depresses people. When people come to our church we want them to think about happy things like love, joy and peace.”
How replacing the cross with a potted palm conjured up images of love, joy and peace, I do not know. They might just as well tack a smiley face to the altar and be done with it.
A Positive Image
For Christians who understand the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the cross is a positive image, not a discouraging one. It reminds us that through Christ, God has saved us in a way that we never could do for ourselves, no matter how hard we have tried. It portrays the love of God, the joy of having Jesus Christ in our hearts, and the peace that the Spirit of God brings which passes all understanding.
We United Methodists “cling to the old rugged cross” not because we are maudlin, but because we see in it the grace of God reflected through Christ’s self-giving love.
What do we say about the flame? We have to be careful here. We know that fire both destroys and refines. In recent years we have seen hundreds of churches and synagogues torched by arsonists, some right here in the Midwest. Many of us are old enough to have imprinted on our minds chilling images of sheet-draped bigots burning crosses in order to intimidate and humiliate. So, having a cross and flame together as our symbol requires some care in our interpretation of it.
We know that fire always has been evidence that God is present. The fire of creation separated the mountains from the seas. The burning bush beckoned Moses to lead an oppressed people through the wilderness to freedom. The fire of Pentecost undid the mayhem of Babel and resulted in the emergence of the Church.
This is the same fire that strangely warmed John Wesley’s heart. And, it is the fire of the Holy Spirit that is burning in our own souls and in the lives of our congregations calling us to live what our tradition identifies as “a holy life.”
Christian Service to Others
For Methodists throughout history this fire has burned most brightly when it has resulted in Christian service to others. We have blazed a path of schools, hospitals, libraries, orphanages, soup kitchens, labor organizations, agricultural centers and social service agencies around the world, all done in Christ’s name.
With the cross and flame we say that, as United Methodists, we believe God saves us through Jesus Christ and empowers us with the Holy Spirit to make a difference in the world. That is what the symbol proclaims, and we are obliged to hold one another accountable for living this truly in our lives.
This article appeared in the August 20, 1999 Northern Illinois Reporter. Published with permission.
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