Beneath the Southern Cross

**Please note, the titles of my entries are from the sections in "The Un-Civil War" but the actual articles are my own work**

Slandered and condemned as a symbol of slavery and moral horror, the Confederate flag, or Southern Cross, is largely held in contempt. Instead of studying the origins of this flag, people accept withiut question the degradation of a flag which in truth holds strong Christian significance and symbolism. The Confederate battle flag was largely designed by U.S. Congressman (later Confederate Congressman) William Porcher Miles. The most prominent feature of the flag is its diagonal cross, or saltire. This symbol has been a preeminent symbol of Christianity world wide for centuries. In Greek the name of Christ began with the letter "x" and thus it became a symbol for Christ. After the apostle Andrew was martyred on a diagonal cross, the saltire took on even more significance, eventually being dubbed "St. Andrew's Cross". One of the reasons of the war was the growing religious differences between the North and South and the Confederate states wanted to establish their position as a Christian, God fearing nation, as opposed to the Deism, Unitarianism, Universalism, Transcendentalism and Liberalism that was becoming more and more prevalent in the North. Besides symbolizing Christianity, the flag held meaning as a symbol against tyranny, large government and unconstitutional politics and of the rights of a free people to determine their own destiny. The red field signified courage, the blue of the saltire signified truth, the white signified the purity of the cause and the saltire signified Christianity and strength. As a whole the flag symbolized Honor, the Honor of the Southern states and the Honor of all those who layed down their lives freely to defend it. As William Miles said : "The flag should be a token of humble acknowledgement to God and be a public testimony to the world that our trust is in the Lord our God". However it is interesting to note that the Southern Cross was not actually used in battle but it is still a very symbolic flag that is loved by all true Southerners.