U.S. Monuments & Symbols

Building monuments to commemorate important events is actually a biblical concept. Whenever the Patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob) were delivered from evil by, or simply met with, God, they often erected an altar in His name afterward. Monument-building is a way of making historical moments permanent, and ensuring future generations will remember what they ought to remember.

U.S. Americans have never balked at using religious language to describe their nation, or at borrowing Christian ideas and practices and constructing from them a civil religion. We have a lot of monuments, most of them homages to the birth of our country or American participation in foreign wars, and some of them have become synonymous with freedom and personal liberty.

Because some misuse or attribute to much importance to them isn't a reason to reject national monuments. They bring us together as citizens, and remind us of the virtues necessary to form and maintain a strong people. The Lincoln Memorial, for example, helps us remember those who died in the name of liberty; the Washington Monument speaks of nobility, strength, and unity of purpose.

Not all the American symbols are monuments; probably the most universal and easily-recognized is the American flag. While we need to be careful not to honor the flag or what it represents beyond what is proper, having a visual reminder of our diverse nation's ultimate unity and humble origins is not only helpful but necessary. We are people of vision, and therefore we need to have something to physically turn toward in the name of solidarity.

For Christians, of course, the ultimate symbol is the Cross of Christ. It's important to remember that the Cross and the American flag do not go hand-in-hand; the flag doesn't save anyone, but faith in Christ does. Trying to conflate the two, as though God has a special place in His heart for the U.S. or our country is somehow a united advocate of the Gospel is dangerous business.

However, those of us who live in the United States and are Christians do have a responsibility both to the Cross and the flag. As Jesus said, render to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's—we owe Christ everything including our very lives; we owe the state only our loyalty and support as citizens as long as the state is not forcing us to deny Christ or disobey His Law. As long as this hierarchy is maintained, we can celebrate American symbols without qualms of conscience.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
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64 Items found Print
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Across America, I Love You
by Christine Loomis, illustrated by Kate Kiesler
from Hyperion Press
for 2nd-4th grade
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$7.99 (1 in stock)
America is....
by Louise W. Borden, illustrated by Stacey Schuett
from Margaret K. McElderry Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
America: A Patriotic Primer
by Lynne Cheney
from Simon and Schuster
for Preschool-2nd grade
in American History Reference (Location: HISA-REF)
$4.00 (2 in stock)
America: A Patriotic Primer
by Lynne Cheney
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool-2nd grade
in American History Reference (Location: HISA-REF)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Betsy Ross and the Flag
Landmark #26
by Jane Mayer, illustrated by Grace Paull
from Random House
for 5th-8th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Boston
from Crescent Books
for 4th-Adult
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Bringing Back the Wolves
by Jude Isabella; illustrated by Kim Smith
from Kids Can Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Ecology (Location: SCI-ECO)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Brooklyn Bridge
by Lynn Curlee
from Atheneum
for 3rd-6th grade
in Architecture and Sculpture (Location: ELE-ARC)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Capital
1st edition from Atheneum
for 3rd-6th grade
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Charlie and Trike in the Grand Canyon Adventure
Green Notebook Series
by Ken Ham, Karen Hansel
from Master Books
for 1st-4th grade
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$14.39 $9.00 (1 in stock)
Cliff-hanger
National Parks Mystery #03
by Gloria Skurzynski and Alane Ferguson
from National Geographic
for 3rd-6th grade
in Mystery & Suspense (Location: FIC-MYS)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
First Book Edition of the Star-Spangled Banner
by Francis Scott Key, Richard B. Morris, illustrated by Henry S. Gillette
First Printing from Franklin Watts
for 1st-3rd grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Flag Book of the United States
by Whitney Smith
Revised Edition from William Morrow & Company
for 8th-Adult
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Fort McHenry
Let's Celebrate America
by Joanne Mattern
from Red Chair Press
for 2nd-6th grade
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Gateway Arch
Let's Celebrate America
by Joanne Mattern
from Red Chair Press
for 2nd-6th grade
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Gonna Sing My Head Off
by Kathleen Krull, illustrated by Allen Garns
First Printing from Scholastic Reference
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Music Education & Reference (Location: ELE-MUSREF)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Grand Canyon
by Tom Vail
from Master Books
for 5th-Adult
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$13.59 $10.00 (1 in stock)
Grand Canyon
Let's Celebrate America
by Joanne Mattern
from Red Chair Press
for 2nd-6th grade
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Hunted
National Parks Mystery #05
by Gloria Skurzynski and Alane Ferguson
from National Geographic
for 3rd-6th grade
in Mystery & Suspense (Location: FIC-MYS)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Liberty
by Lynn Curlee
from Atheneum
for 4th-6th grade
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Liberty: The Statue and the American Dream
by Leslie Allen
from Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation
for 9th-Adult
in Immigration & Emigration (Location: HISA-20IM)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Little Rose of the Mesa
Children of America Stories
by Madeline Brandeis
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 1st-4th grade
Money, Money, Money
by Nancy Winslow Parker
1st edition from HarperCollins
for 3rd-6th grade
in Money (Coins & Currency) (Location: MATR-MON)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
National Parks
by Erin McHugh, illustrated by Neal Aspinall, Doug Leen, and Brian Maebius
from Black Dog & Leventhal
for 3rd-6th grade
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
National Parks of the USA
by Kate Siber, Illustrated by Chris Turnham
from Wide Eyed Editions
for 2nd-Adult
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$30.00
O, Say Can You See
by Sheila Keenan, Illustrated by Ann Boyajian
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Our Historic Desert
by Diana Elaine Lindsay
First Edition from Copley Books
for 5th-Adult
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Pop's Bridge
by Eve Bunting, illustrated by C. F. Payne
from Clarion Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Rage of Fire
National Parks Mystery #02
by Gloria Skurzynski and Alane Ferguson
from National Geographic
for 3rd-6th grade
in Mystery & Suspense (Location: FIC-MYS)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Real Book About Historic Places of America
by Nelson Beecher Keyes
from Garden City Books
for 5th-8th grade
in Vintage Nonfiction (Location: VIN-NFIC)
Rushmore
by Lynn Curlee
from Scholastic Inc.
for 3rd-6th grade
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
Sentinel of the Seas
by Dennis M. Powers
1st edition from Citadel Press
for Adult
in Nautical History (Location: VIN-NAUT)
Story of Arlington National Cemetery
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein & Richard Wahl
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of Arlington National Cemetery
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of Arlington National Cemetery
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein & Richard Wahl
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of Monticello
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Norman Richards
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Story of Monticello
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Norman Richards, Illustrated by Chuck Mitchell
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Story of Mount Rushmore
by Marilyn Prolman & Phil Austin
from Children's Press
for 1st-4th grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of Mount Rushmore
by Marilyn Prolman
from Children's Press
for 1st-4th grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$5.00 (2 in stock)
Story of Mount Vernon
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Natalie Miller
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of Old Glory
by Albert I. Mayer
from Children's Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of Old Glory
by Albert I. Mayer
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$5.00 (2 in stock)
Story of the Brooklyn Bridge
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Zachary Kent
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Capitol
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Marilyn Prolman
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Capitol
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Andrew Santella
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of the Capitol
by Marilyn Prolman & Bob O'Malley
from Children's Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of the Lincoln Memorial
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Natalie Miller
from Unknown Publisher
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of the Lincoln Memorial
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Natalie Miller
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$5.00 (2 in stock)
Story of the Smithsonian Institution
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$5.00 (2 in stock)
Story of the Smithsonian Institution
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
Cornerstones of Freedom
by David K. Wright
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the White House
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Natali Miller
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of the White House
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Deborah Kent
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Story of the White House
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Natalie Miller
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
Stratford Hall Plantation
by Richard Cheek
for 7th-Adult
in Clearance: History & Geography (Location: ZCLE-HIS)
$2.00 (2 in stock)
Uncle Sam and Old Glory
by Delno C. West, Jean M. West
1st edition from Atheneum
for 3rd-6th grade
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Vinnie and Abraham
by Dawn FitzGerald, illustrated by Catherine Stock
from Charlesbridge
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Washington, DC
from Impact Books
for 2nd-Adult
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
White House is Burning
by Jane Sutcliffe
from Charlesbridge
for 6th-10th grade
in War of 1812 (Location: HISA-19WET)
Wildlife Portfolio of the Western National Parks
by Joseph S. Dixon
from United States Government Printing Office
for 3rd-Adult
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$14.00 (1 in stock)
World Trade Center
from Courage Books
for 8th-Adult
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Yellowstone and the Northern Rockies
by Ted Smart and David Gibbon
from Crescent Books
for 4th-Adult
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
Your Guide to Yellowstone (True North)
by Dennis Bokovoy, John Hergenrather, Mike Oard, Tom Vail
Spi from Master Books
for 8th-Adult
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$15.19 $10.00 (1 in stock)
Your Guide to Zion and Bryce Canyon (True North)
by Dennis Bokovoy, John Hergenrather, Mike Oard, Tom Vail
Spi from Master Books
for ages 10 and up
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$12.79