Despite the two flag-related controversies that have been dogging him, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito is refusing to recuse himself from cases that are relevant to the January 6, 2021 insurrection, the "Stop the Steal" movement and former President Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the 2024 election results.
According to the New York Times' Jodi Kantor, an upside-down America flag was hanging outside Alito's home in Alexandria, Virginia on July 17, 2021. And during the Summer of 2023, an "Appeal to Heaven" flag was hanging outside his summer beach home along the New Jersey Shore. Both flags have been adopted as far-right "Stop the Steal" or MAGA symbols.
The "Appeal to Heaven" flag, of course, existed long before Trump was born — it even pre-dates the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776.
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But author/religious scholar Matthew D. Taylor, in an article published by the conservative website The Bulwark on June 10, delves into the ways in which that flag is being used in the MAGA movement these days.
"I do not know the Alitos' reasons for flying the Appeal to Heaven flag for several months last summer," Taylor explains, "but I have spent the past three years researching the Christian symbols, theologies, and ideologies of the January 6th rioters. The Appeal to Heaven flag was a quintessential part of the fervor and chaos of that day."
Taylor continues, "While the Appeal to Heaven flag is rooted in American history, it has taken on a whole raft of new connotations in the past decade. And in that timespan, it has also grown far more popular than it has been since it was first flown. These flags have proliferated in public buildings and government offices not as a celebration of American independence, but as a coded endorsement of an ongoing Christian nationalist crusade, hidden in plain sight."
The author/religious studies scholar emphasizes that although the "Appeal to Heaven" flag was used to celebrate the United States' independence from Great Britain in the past, its "contemporary connotation" is something much different. Far-right evangelical Christian fundamentalists, Taylor warns, are using it as "the banner of America's Christian reclamation and to enlist government officials and Christian activists to promote Christian nationalism at the federal, state, and local levels."
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That includes the theocratic New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) movement, Taylor notes.
"Since January 6th," according to Taylor, "Appeal to Heaven flags have gained further visibility through their endorsement by government officials. The National Association of Christian Lawmakers (NACL) is leading one campaign to fly the flag over government buildings."
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Matthew D. Taylor's full article for The Bulwark is available at this link.