Puerto Rico - Religious Flags
The Anglicanism arrived at Puerto Rico in the 1872, when under the direction of Bishop W. W. Jackson, Bishop of Antigua, the work of the Santi'sima Trinidad (Holy Trinity), at Ponce, was established. Years later, the church of Todos los Santos (All the Saints) was built at Vieques under the same jurisdiction. The church of San Andres (St. Andrew), at Mayaguez, was the first that began work in Spanish, in the 1907. In 1901, the Anglicanism passed to the jurisdiction of the Episcopal Church of the USA, and Bishop James H. Van Buren was named diocesan. Soon, bishops Charles B. Colmore, Charles F. Boynton, Albert Ervine Swift, Francisco Reus-Froylan, and David Andres Alvarez have succeeded in the episcopate, being bishop Alvarez the first elected bishop in the Diocese of Puerto Rico.
Seal of the Puerto Rican Episcopal Church: it is oval, the
commonest form of the ecclesiastical shields. Inside the seal
bordure appear the Spanish words Iglesia Episcopal
Puertorriqueqa, meaning Puerto Rican Episcopal Church. The
Great Mitre: it means that the authority of the Episcopal Church
is the Bishop. The Episcopal adjective comes from the Latin word
"episcopus" (bishop). Eagle: appears with
its wings extended between two mitres (the eagle is the commonest
bird in heraldry). The eagle appears to be looking for the two
mitres. The two small mitres: representing the two episcopates, the
Episcopate of the United States, from which derive the Puerto
Rican Episcopate. Red field: in the upper part of the shield,
that generally occupies one third of the same and which it is
separated from the rest of the shield by a line; it is of red
color, to mean the blood of Christ, by means of who our
redemption took place. Blue field: the rest of the shield is of
blue color meaning the sea and indicating the insular character
of Puerto Rico. Paschal Lamb: it is of silver color, it indicates
the seat of the Bishopric in San Juan and of the Cathedral, city
and seat established in honor of Saint John the Baptist. The flag
is a seal at the center of a white drape.
Blas Delgado, 5 May 2005