Since taking over as U.S. defense secretary, Pete Hegseth has repeatedly brought conservative evangelical Christian language into Pentagon life, and the start of the U.S.-Israel war with Iran has intensified the attention on whether that messaging fits the military’s secular mission and commitment to pluralism, the Associated Press reported.
The scrutiny traces to a series of examples described by AP. AP said Hegseth has hosted monthly Christian worship services for employees at the Pentagon, while the department’s promotional videos have shown Bible verses alongside military footage. In interviews and speeches, Hegseth has argued that the United States was founded as a Christian nation and that troops should embrace God—an approach critics say risks clashing with the armed forces’ secular role and with the service-wide standard that the military supports a wide range of faiths and none.
In the context of the Iran war, AP reported that Hegseth’s Christian rhetoric took on new meaning during Pentagon remarks. At a press briefing, AP said Hegseth referred to Iran’s Shiite clerics as “The mullahs are desperate and scrambling,” and he later recited Psalm 144, a passage that Jews and Christians share, including the lines: “Blessed be the Lord, my rock, who trains my hands for war and my fingers for battle.”
AP also reported that Hegseth has a history of defending the Crusades, describing them as medieval wars between Christians and Muslims. The report said he discussed Crusades in his 2020 book “American Crusade,” writing that those who enjoy Western civilization should “thank a crusader,” and it said two of his tattoos reflect crusader imagery, including the Jerusalem Cross and the Latin phrase “Deus Vult,” which he described as “the rallying cry of Christian knights as they marched to Jerusalem.”
Religious and academic critics raised concerns about how the U.S. decision to go to war could intersect with Hegseth’s faith framing. AP cited Matthew D. Taylor, a visiting scholar at Georgetown who studies religious extremism and who has been a frequent Hegseth critic. Taylor said that “The U.S. voluntarily going to war against a Muslim country with the military under the leadership of Pete Hegseth is exactly the kind of scenario that people like me were warning about before the election and throughout his appointment process.” Taylor added that Hegseth’s rhetoric and leadership “can only inflame and reinforce the fears and deep animosity that the regime in Iran has towards the U.S.”
AP reported that when asked whether Hegseth views the Iran war in religious terms, a Defense Department spokesperson pointed to a recent CBS interview in which Hegseth appeared to confirm that framing. In the interview, AP reported that Hegseth said: “We’re fighting religious fanatics who seek a nuclear capability in order for some religious Armageddon,” and he added, “But from my perspective, I mean, obviously I’m a man of faith who encourages our troops to lean into their faith, rely on God.”
Alongside debates about rhetoric, a separate line of concern focused on allegations about what commanders told service members during the Iran conflict. AP reported that claims went viral shortly after the fighting began that U.S. military commanders were telling troops the war fulfilled biblical prophecies connected to Armageddon and the return of Christ, but AP said it could not verify the claims and that they stemmed from one source: Mikey Weinstein, head of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation. AP said Weinstein described allegations he received from hundreds of troops, and it said 30 Democratic members of Congress asked the Pentagon inspector general to investigate.
In an interview with AP, Weinstein declined to provide documentation or the original emails he said he received from service members, according to AP. Weinstein told AP that troops were afraid of retaliation, so they would not speak to the media even if their identities remained protected. AP also reported that three major religion watchdog groups—the Freedom From Religion Foundation, the Anti-Defamation League, and the Council on American-Islamic Relations—said they have not received similar complaints. The report said the Pentagon declined to comment on the allegations.
The AP reporting also tied the renewed scrutiny to Hegseth’s plans for the chaplaincy system, which is designed to provide spiritual care to troops of all faiths and none. AP reported that Hegseth has pledged to reform the military chaplain corps and that he scrapped the 2025 U.S. Army Spiritual Fitness Guide. AP said he wants to renew chaplains’ religious focus and described it in a December video message as having been minimized “in an atmosphere of political correctness and secular humanism.”
AP reported that critics worry the changes could further blur the line between military leadership and one faith tradition. Rabbi Laurence Bazer, a retired U.S. Army colonel and chaplain, said in a statement that the approach risks making service members feel like outsiders when the language of military leadership draws exclusively from one faith tradition. “The U.S. military reflects the full diversity of this country — people of every faith step forward to serve,” Bazer said. “That diversity is a strength worth protecting.”
AP also described Hegseth’s religious network as connected to the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches, including a patriarchal structure in which women cannot serve in leadership, and pastors who argue that homosexuality should be criminalized. AP said Hegseth last year reposted a video by a CREC pastor who opposed women’s right to vote, and it said the group’s prominent leader, Doug Wilson, identified as a Christian nationalist. The report said Wilson preached at the Pentagon in February at Hegseth’s invitation and that both Wilson and Hegseth have questioned Muslim immigration to the United States.