Episcopal Shield

5/8" x 1/2" - 15.9 x 12.7 mm

The red cross on a white field is the St. George Cross, an indicator of the Episcopal link to the Church of England, the mother church of the Anglican Communion. The miniature crosses in the blue quadrant symbolize the nine original American dioceses that met in Philadelphia in 1789 to adopt the constitution of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America.

The miniature crosses form the St. Andrew's Cross, a tribute to the Scottish church's role in ordaining the first American bishop, Samuel Seabury, in 1784. The colors red, white and blue symbolize the sacrifice of Christ and Christian martyrs (red), the purity of the Christian faith (white), and the humanity of Christ received from the Virgin Mary (blue). The Episcopal Church's standing as the U.S. branch of the Anglican Communion is represented In the duplicating the colors of the American flag,