Pete Hegseth’s Holy War Is an Unholy Nightmare

At a worship service at the Pentagon on Wednesday, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (who likes to style himself the secretary of war) delivered a prayer that was bloodcurdling in its extremist belligerence and invocation of religion to justify mass slaughter.

At one point in the prayer, Hegseth asked God to

“Give [US soldiers] wisdom in every decision, endurance for the trial ahead, unbreakable unity, and overwhelming violence of action against those who deserve no mercy. Preserve their lives, sharpen their resolve, and let justice be executed swiftly and without remorse that evil may be driven back and wicked souls delivered to the eternal damnation prepared for them…. We ask these things with bold confidence in the mighty and powerful name of Jesus Christ, King over all kings and amen.”

Perhaps the best thing that can be said about this prayer is that, although it was delivered in a sectarian spirit, it might yet have an ecumenical effect, since it has something to offend just about everyone.

Secular Americans and those who belong to non-Christian religions, of course, will be rightly angered by the fact that Hegseth violated long-standing norms that prayers in public services should avoid proselytizing for a particular faith. But the the Iran War is massively unpopular with most Americans. It has also seen the US commit horrific war crimes, including the bombing of an elementary school at Minab that killed at least 175 people, mostly children. Many, or quite possibly most, Christians will be affronted at the idea that their faith should be used so crudely to justify such violence.

Pope Leo XIV condemned war in a Palm Sunday Mass in the strongest terms. In his homily, Leo said, “Brothers and sisters, this is our God: Jesus, King of Peace, who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war, He does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them.” The contrast between the pope’s words and Hegseth’s prayer could not be greater.

Beyond theological objections, there are obvious pragmatic reasons why a defense secretary shouldn’t utter a sectarian prayer. The US Army has many non-Christians of all stripes, so Hegseth is in effect alienating them even as he is sending them off to war. Further, Hegseth’s prayer is a great gift to the Islamic Republic of Iran, whose leaders are claiming to defend the Muslim world from “the Great Satan” of the United States. It lends credence to the idea that the US is launching a new crusade, one that Muslims must unite to fend off. With US military bases and embassies in the Middle Eastern countries already under siege and allies such as Qatar and Oman openly pondering the reliability of the US as an ally, Hegseth is helping splinter an already fraying war effort.

The fact that Hegseth cast aside prudence in making his pugnacious prayer is testimony to how much of a true believer he is—not only in his particular brand of born-again Christianity but also in far-right identity politics. In his 2024 book The War on Warriors, Hegseth argued that liberal culture in the form of DEI had destroyed the military, making white men ashamed of joining the army. According to Hegseth, too many military leaders were “whores to wokesters.” “The Left captured the military quickly,” he claimed, “and we must reclaim it at a faster pace.” His anti-woke agenda included getting rid of DEI and purging the military of trans soldiers.

The Washington Post reports that Hegseth’s strident and aggressive prayer is part of a larger attempt to reshape the military to fit his own brand of muscular evangelical Christianity and right-wing politics:

Every month at the Pentagon, Hegseth hosts evangelical worship services that legal experts say are unprecedented. His social media profile and public comments routinely espouse his understanding of Christianity, which is one that would dominate American life and cast those who disagree with him as God’s enemies. He has brought clergy from his small Christian denomination to preach at the Pentagon, including a prominent pastor who says women shouldn’t have the right to vote.

Hegseth has been working hard to make the Pentagon a bastion for straight, white men. As Michael Klare noted in The Nation in January of 2025, Hegseth’s earliest move as defense secretary included purging prominent Black and female officers. This purge continues. On Friday, The New York Times reported that Hegseth was blocking the promotion of four officers slated to become one-star generals. Two of the officers are Black and two are women.

The newspaper also recounted a troubling incident that occurred last summer involving Ricky Buria, Hegseth’s chief of staff and Army Secretary Daniel P. Driscoll:

Mr. Buria chastised the Army secretary for selecting Maj. Gen. Antoinette R. Gant, a combat engineer who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, to take command of the Military District of Washington, said three current and former defense and administration officials familiar with the exchange. The command provides security and performs ceremonial duties in the nation’s capital, and its commander often appears alongside the president at Arlington National Cemetery.

Mr. Buria told Mr. Driscoll that President Trump would not want to stand next to a Black female officer at military events, the officials said.

Hegseth’s combination of religious fanaticism and right-wing grievance politics is dangerous both at home and abroad. As Séamus Malekafzali persuasively argued in The Nation, the US is losing the war in Iran. The only path forward for ending this catastrophe is a negotiated settlement that accedes to Iran’s desire for long-term security guarantees. But neither Donald Trump (whose ego is heavily invested in the idea that he’s a winner) nor Hegseth is well-equipped to make the compromises necessary. In particular, the fact that Hegseth sees the world in Manichaean terms means he’ll not be willing to make deals with forces he sees as metaphysically and categorically evil.

Domestically, by making the military into a MAGA force, Hegseth is exacerbating the culture wars in ways that could lead to internal strife. Speaking to The Washington Post, Mikey Weinstein of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, a group that promotes the separation of church and state in the military, said, “One side is very pro-MAGA and the other is not. If you have something like another Jan. 6, now we’re looking at a military that will start fighting itself, it’s a recipe for a civil war with military on both sides.” Hegseth’s holy war is shaping up to be an unholy nightmare.