In a chilly sunrise ceremony held on Sunday, February 9, 1997, the members of the True & Living Church of Jesus Christ of Saints of the Last Days dedicated their meetinghouse on Main Street in Manti, Utah. As part of the ceremony they raised the "Banner of Zion" on a flagpole mounted on the top of the building.
The meetinghouse, which is also known as "The Red Brick Store" in memory of the original in Nauvoo, Illinois, is the only established location for the members of the TLC. Numbering nearly 200, the members easily fill to capacity the long, narrow building. The TLC has been meeting in the Main Street building for over a year, but remodeling and renovation postponed the official dedication.
To the members of the TLC, the flag (also known as the "Kingdom of God Flag") raised on top of the building symbolizes the merging of the Kingdom of God on the earth with the Kingdom of Heaven as described in a revelation given to the Prophet Joseph Smith, Jr. (see LDS D&C 65). The upper gold field represents the Lord Jesus Christ, while the lower blue field represents the royal Priesthood on earth. The central white disc symbolizes the Celestial Kingdom.
On the disc are golden emblems further signifying the merging of the earthly and heavenly kingdoms. The upper ring represents the Kingdom of Heaven, and the lower the Kingdom of God on the earth. Where the two rings intersect is an "all-seeing eye", symbolizing that a portion of the Heavenly Priesthood is already here. Within each of the rings are three six-point stars, representing respectively the Godheads of Creation and of the Earth's Temporal existence. On either side of the rings are the letters "L" and "V", standing for Liberty and Virtue.
The members of the True and Living Church of Jesus Christ believe that the raising of the "Banner of Zion" is intended to show the world that the true God once again has a covenant people on the earth, and that the return of the Lord Jesus Christ is imminent.
[The above article was posted on the Internet to various news resources.]
Believe it or not, the inspiration for the flag design came before the HST image below was made public. It is a photograph of the bipolar planetary nebula MyCn18, or the "Hourglass". Notice the intersecting rings and the "eye" in the middle, all of which have a striking resemblance to the above flag design. To the members of TLC, this is just another witness (apart from the spiritual one) that God is aware of their actions and sanctions the same.
