A woodcut by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld (1794-1872) for the title page of the German periodical Christliches Kunstblatt fuer Kirche, Schule und Haus (Christian Art Newspaper for Church, School, and House) in 1858.  The monogram of von Carolsfeld is in the lower righthand corner.  In an ingenious way von Carolsfeld depicts the church as a woman who is producing Christian art with the help of the Holy Spirit.

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The American Flag of the Cross

While Denmark was the first of the Scandinavian countries to adopt a white cross on a field of red for use as its national banner, in time this design was adopted by the other Scandinavian countries as well:  Sweden and Norway, as well as Finland.  Iceland adopted it, also.

This cross has been termed a “Nordic cross” because of its uniqueness.  That is to say, it is a Latin cross which has been laid on its right side on a field of red, the color red signifying identity, the color white signifying freedom.  What a statement!

This national flag unashamedly represents Christianity.

While Israel inserts the star of David on its flag; while Muslim countries display the Islamic crescent on their flags, putting a Christian cross on a national banner, though not biblically commanded, is a voluntary, national testimony of gospel belief.

At this point in time; at this crucial moment in American history, when our very, national existence is threatened again for the third time, our people would do well to insert in spirit the saving cross of Christ back into their national thinking, return their repentant hearts to their Savior, and confess publicly, “Without his gospel grace we are nothing”; hence the picture above of the holy, white cross of Jesus Christ overlaid on our premiere, national flag.

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The Urtel Cross

With this symbol I confess the following.

   The cross, of course, represents the excruciating dying which the great and mighty God underwent on his cross of suffering as he endured alone the torments of my eternal damnation for me, which I had well deserved because of my sins, so that I could be released from it all, and be spared for a life with him in heaven.  What great love the Lord has shown to me!

   Therefore, a heart could and should be placed at every end of this cross to profess my confidence in the glorious gospel guaranty that at every point of his cross-suffering, God the Son endured it all out of love for me.

   Furthermore, this cross is golden.  This is to assure me additionally that the cross of Christ presents a golden, or favorable outcome for me the sinner.  In other words, since God the Son has suffered my sentence of damnation, he has gained favor with the offended and angry Almighty for me, who, ever since, has presented himself to me as a loving Lord; who now welcomes me with open arms into his family, and, soon after, into his mansions in heaven.

   The crown of diamonds signifies the crown of glory which the Lord remarkably has promised to place on my brow (1st Peter 5:4) as mine own because I now trust his glorious gospel pledge regarding the saving work of Christ on the altar of his cross.  Yet it is God who should get all of the credit, for it was he who brought me to this faith solely through his own exertions (Ephesians 1:19).

   What great things the loving Lord of the cross has done for me!  May I confess my faith with rejoicing!

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   The Urtel Flag

   Found in North America the wolverine has this distinctive feature:  upon meeting another creature, it will attack.  It will not retreat.  It will not waver.  It always will attack.

   The only way that the American people could and should survive annihilation and stand victorious over their foes would be never to retreat, never to waver, but always to march under the courage-giving, strength-sending gospel banner of Christ’s resurrection, treading underfoot (Titus 1:9-11) the power of their three great oppressors in the New Testament era:  The Arian, the Islamic, and the papal oppressors, by preaching far and wide the gospel report (Matthew 28:18-20).  These three great curses, which the Almighty has announced beforehand in Revelation 9:1-12 (Arian), 9:13-19 (Islamic), and 11:14 and 13:1-2 (papal), are what he will use to punish those who would consider themselves to be a part of the church of Christ, but who, to the contrary, have become prideful, worldly, and who have fallen away (2nd Thessalonians 2:3).

   Fight the good fight of faith!  Put on the whole armor of God; and having done all:  you will stand!

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Found in North America, the wolverine has this distinctive feature:  upon meeting another, it will attack.  It will not retreat.  It will not waver.  It  always will attack.

The only way that the American people could and should survive annihilation and stand victorious over their Muslim foes (Revelation 9:13-19) would be never to retreat, never to waver, but always to march under the courage-giving, strength-sending gospel banner of Christ’s victorious resurrection, treading underfoot the power of their Islamic oppressors by preaching far and wide the gospel report.

Fight the good fight of faith!  Put on the whole armor of God; and having done all:  you will stand!

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Found in North America the wolverine has this distinctive feature:  upon meeting another creature, it will attack.  It will not retreat.  It will not waver.  It always will attack.

The only way that the American people could and should survive annihilation and stand victorious over their papal foe (Revelation 13:1-8; 17:1-18) would be never to retreat, never to waver, but always to march under the courage-giving, strength-sending gospel banner of Christ’s resurrection, treading underfoot the power of their papal oppressor by preaching far and wide the gospel report.

Fight the good fight of faith!  Put on the whole armor of God; and having done all:  you will stand!

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Found in North America the wolverine has this distinctive feature:  upon meeting another creature, it will attack.  It will not retreat.  It will not waver.  It always will attack.

The only way that the American people could and should survive a loss of saving faith and stand victorious over their Arian foes (Revelation 9:1-12) would be never to retreat, never to waver, but always to march under the courage-giving, strength-sending gospel banner of Christ’s resurrection, treading underfoot the power of their Arian oppressors by preaching far and wide the gospel report.

Fight the good fight of faith!  Put on the whole armor of God; and having done all:  you will stand!

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An exquisite hand drawing by Gustav Koenig for the article by Martin Luther entitled “Mrs. Music,” from the German book, Martin Luthers Geistliche Lieder [Martin Luther’s Spiritual Songs] (Samuel Gottlieb Liesching: Stuttgart, 1848), seite iii. The scene on the left depicts 1st Samuel 16:23; the scene on the right: 2nd Kings 3:15. Koenig’s monogram consisting of the initials “G” and “K” will be seen hanging like an ornament from the bottom-most part of the center of his etching.

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“Morning prayers in the family of Sebastian Bach.”

   A photogravure of a painting by Toby E. Rosenthal (1848-1917).

   Rosenthal acquired the inspiration for his picture from a comment which Bach had made in a letter to a friend of his, Georg Erdmann, dated 28 October, 1730, announcing, “Of my first marriage, three sons and a daughter are living [Wilhelm Friedemann, age 19; Carl Philipp Emanuel, age 16; Johann Gottfried Bernhard, age 15; and Katarina Dorothea, age 21]…. Of my second marriage, one son and two daughters are living [Gottfried Heinrich, age 6, Elisabeth Juliane Friederike, age 4; and Regine Johanna, age 2]…. the children of my second marriage are still little, the eldest, a boy being six years old.  They are all born musicians, and I can assure you that I can already form a concert [consort, ensemble], both vocal and instrumental, of my own family” (Philipp Spitta, Johann Sebastian Bach, translators Clara Bell and J. A. Fuller-Maitland [Dover Publications, Inc.:  New York, 1992], II, page 254.  In regards to the names of his children, see volume II, pages 8 & 153; and volume III, pages 268 & 350f.!  Likewise, consult Christoph Wolff, Johann Sebastian Bach, the learned musician [W. W. Norton & Company:  New York, 2000], pages 396-398!

   Based on this information, Rosenthal actually painted an extra boy into his picture that did not exist at that time.

   Incidentally, “Sebastian” actually was Bach’s first  name, that is, it was the name by which his wife and others called him.  In other words, according to common practice among the Germans at that time and later, the first listed name(s) (for example, “Johann”) was the middle name, while the name (“Sebastian”) which came right before the last name (“Bach”) was actually the first name.

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 The Protest at Spires

   A picture depicting the Lutherans who presented a protest in April, 1529 at Spires, professing, “In matters concerning God’s honor and the salvation of souls each one must for himself stand before God and give account.”  The open book pictured is opened to Romans 14:12 in the German, which reads, “So then each of us will give account of himself to God.”