the place of honor. During World War II the flag was flown along with the U.S. flag in a number of Lutheran churches, many of them with German backgrounds, who wanted to show their solidarity with the United States during the war against Nazi Germany. The Christian Flag spread outside North America with Christian missionaries. It can be seen today in or outside many Christian churches throughout the world, particularly in Latin America and in Africa. By the 1930s the flag had been adopted by some Protestant churches in Europe, Asia, and Africa as well. The Christian Flag is not patented and therefore, "Anyone may manufacture it, and it may be used on all proper occasions." In U.S. evangelical Christian schools, it is customary for the Christian flag to be displayed opposite the U.S. flag. In Canada and the United States, accommodationists and separationists have entered impassioned debate on the legality of erecting the Christian Flag atop governmental buildings. Pledge Some churches and organizations practice a "pledge of allegiance" or "affirmation of loyalty" to the Christian Flag, which is similar to the Pledge of Allegiance to the U.S. flag. The first pledge was written by Lynn Harold Hough, a Methodist minister who had heard Ralph Diffendorfer, secretary to the Methodist Young People's Missionary Movement, promoting the Christian flag at a rally. He wrote the following pledge: Some more conservative evangelical, Lutheran, Adventist, and Baptist churches and schools may use an alternative version of the pledge: An alternate version that some Lutheran schools use is this: Others use this version: For the Christian Flag Pledge, it is customary to stand with the hands clasped behind the back, as if in an "at ease" military stance. Anthem See also American civil religion Black Standard Christian nationalism Christian symbolism Civil religion Cross necklace Flag of Israel Flag of Vatican City Head of Christ History of Christian flags Islamic flags Nordic cross flag References Further reading External links Christian symbols Protestant ecumenism Religious flags Flags with crosses Flags introduced in 1907