DESPITE being the official flag of the Christian faith, a new addition to a village church has been baffling passers-by.

After years of flying the St George’s Cross above St Cuthbert’s Church in Over Kellet, vicar the Rev Ken Clapham decided it was time for a change and ran up the Christian Flag – a gift from a friend in America.

But even members of the congregation have been puzzled as to its meaning, prompting Mr Clapham to take to the Internet to research it.

“The idea for the flag was conceived in 1897 and it is one of the oldest flags in the world, but no one knew what it was and it has sparked so much interest among people going past that I’ve been amazed,” he said.

The white flag bears a blue square in one corner and a small red cross and Mr Clapham also has a smaller version of it, which his friend, American astronaut Charlie Duke, took with him on the Apollo 16 mission to the moon in 1972.