On August 2, 1984, at the 42nd General Conference held in St. Louis, Missouri, the A.M.E. Zion Church adopted an official denominational logo. The Rev. Dr. Percy Smith, Jr., a Zion minister, created the logo's design and interpretation.
The Triangle: Representing the Godhead in this equilateral triangle is the Holy Trinity - the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit.
The Ecclesiastical Color: The colors of the logo suggest the mood of a church festival. Within recent years, the interpretation of black has changed to encompass a texture of the whole life. All colors blending and melting together signify joy, sadness, struggle, faith, hope and finally, eternal life.
V: The widely used symbol for victory represents a church born victoriously under the leadership of James Varick, our first Bishop. V also represents Varick.
Latin Cross: One of the most accepted symbols of Christianity, this plain and empty cross alerts the world to the reality that "He is not here, He is risen victoriously."
Red Cross: It symbolizes power, love, glory and honor and is associated with our Lord's passion and suffering and the Christian's zeal.
A-African: This refers to our African background. It is in black and suggests that Africa is the cradle of civilization from whence came all races and colors.
M-Methodist: This refers to the doctrine about God and Christ to which we adhere. It is in green, the universal color of growth, progress and hope.
E-Episcopal: This means that we are a church overseen by Bishops. Purple, so often worn by our Episcopate, denotes kingly authority in Godly judgment.
Z-Zion: God's Holy Hill stands for our branch of Methodism, which is a separate entity from the A.M.E., C.M.E., and M.E. Churches. The color blue is symbolic of heaven and sincerity.
Source: The African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church: A Bicentennial Commemorative History, by Bishop James Clinton Hoggard.
