"In the new context of the costly victory of the North, the national flag acquired a special status, even a presence as the effulgent symbol of national unity."

Morgan, David. The Sacred Gaze: Religious Visual Culture in Theory and Practice. Berkley: University of California Press, 2005.

Though an admittedly short passage, this single sentence spoke to me more than most others I read. In it, Morgan argues that the American flag took on its greatest meaning following the civil war, and that its value was related to this cost. This is reminiscent of Chidester's belief that, for religious work to occur, there must be a degree of sacrifice; that one must suffer or die for the greater, and that in doing so is venerated. Perhaps the flag takes on a symbol similar to a cross to those who are patriotic: it becomes a symbol of many soldiers' sacrifices, and the freedom that sacrifice offers.