The writer of the following article is a member of the Culver City Area Interfaith Alliance. While serving as the secretary of that organization, she has never written about the purchase of patron saint medals.

Neither has she written about any government objection to the sale within Culver City of patron saint medals. Indeed, a store not far from the writer sells literature about Catholic theology and about the various patron saints. For some reason, that same bookstore has been overlooked by a man who loves books, a man who was recently among the many candidates for the City Council.

Although the United States makes a point of separating church and state, there was a time not long ago when some patron saint medals appeared together with the colors red, white and blue. That was the period immediately following the terrorist attack on September 11, 2001.

After two different planes flew into the World Trade Center in New York City, hundreds of firefighters tried to put out the flames in that burning building. Scores of firefighters lost their lives as the burning building came tumbling down. Many police officers had rushed to the scene of that tragedy, and they too lost their lives.

Now before September 11, 2001, a member of the U.S. government might have had little reason to learn about the significance of patron saint medals. After that day, however, Catholics in the U.S. had a new reason to buy two such medals—the Saint Florian medal and the Saint Michael medal. At the same time, government officials were praising the heroes who had initiated the new interest in patron saint medals.

Catholics across the U.S. but especially in New York City, put forth money for medals honoring the Saints Florian and Michael. They knew that Saint Florian is considered the patron saint of firefighters, and Saint Michael is the patron saint of police officers. Both men had been associated with acts of valor, acts that promoted the public safety.

True to its practice of separating church and state, the government of the United States did not issue a call for all citizens to purchase specific patron saint medals. In fact, no government publication included details on the patron saints then being honored by Catholics across the U.S. Still, the government made no attempt to discourage the draping of red white and blue streamers over medals to those two specific saints.

Moreover, one can assert with scant amount of doubt that at least a few U.S. servicemen, those recruited right after 9/11/2001, carried into battle the medal of a patron saint. The fighting men of the United States are not asked to abandon their religious practices. In fact, clergy in the U.S. military reach out to servicemen of all faiths.

What an American has in his home, or on his person, is not regulated by the U.S. government. Americans are free to display their beliefs by wearing religious jewelry, or by placing symbolic objects on the lawn, or in their home. If they so choose, Catholic Americans can continue to deck any number of patron saint medals in streamers of red, white and blue. Of course, they need to do so in the privacy of a home or church setting.

Alignment of religious symbols and patriotic symbols is frowned on in a public setting.