Hegseth Is Praying for “Overwhelming Violence” at the Pentagon. The Pope Responded.
The big picture: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has implemented unprecedented monthly evangelical worship services at the Pentagon. Every service has been led by evangelicals, including a pastor who says women shouldn’t have the right to vote. The most recent session, the first since the Iran war began, included a prayer for “overwhelming violence of action against those who deserve no mercy.” He’s also gutted the chaplain corps, slashing religious affiliation codes from 200 faiths to 31.
Why it matters: The pushback now reaches from rank-and-file Pentagon staff to Pope Leo XIV, who said during Palm Sunday mass that God “does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them.” The U.S. military has historically been careful about invoking any specific religion during wartime. Hegseth has thrown that out entirely while waging war against a Muslim-majority country.
The prayer: At the most recent Pentagon worship session, a pastor prayed: “Let every round find its mark against the enemies of righteousness and our great nation. Give them wisdom in every decision, endurance for the trial ahead, unbreakable unity and overwhelming violence of action against those who deserve no mercy.”
The chaplain overhaul: Hegseth cut religious affiliation codes from 200 faiths to 31. Changed chaplain uniform insignia from rank to religious symbols. Accused past administrations of injecting “political correctness and secular humanism.” Scrapped the Army’s Spiritual Fitness guide for focusing on “self-care” over “truth.” A retired Army major general says dozens of active-duty chaplains report being marginalized and cut out of communications.
The Pentagon pushback: A senior Army civilian with decades at the Pentagon called it terrifying, saying if troops believe “God is on our side,” then “what precludes us from doing anything we want to win?” Another Pentagon leader: “When the top of the chain couches these operations in this hyper-Christian tone, it flies in the face of the freedom of religion that the Constitution enshrines and that our men and women in uniform sign up to defend.”
The Pope’s response: During Palm Sunday mass, Pope Leo XIV 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.” He quoted scripture: “Even though you make many prayers, I will not listen: your hands are full of blood.” The timing, the same week as Hegseth’s “overwhelming violence” session, was not subtle.
The legal fight: The Pentagon says the services are “100 percent voluntary.” BUT Americans United for the Separation of Church and State is suing the DOD, arguing: “Even if these prayer services are presented as voluntary, there is pressure on federal employees to attend in order to appease their bosses — especially since these services occur amidst the Trump administration’s campaign to punish anyone who doesn’t comply with its Christian Nationalist agenda.”
By the numbers:
200 → 31 — chaplain religious affiliation codes before and after Hegseth’s overhaul
0 — non-evangelical pastors who have presided over Pentagon worship sessions
1.4 billion — Christians worldwide whose spiritual leader just rejected the framing of these prayers
The bottom line: Hegseth isn’t just expressing personal faith. He’s embedding evangelical Christianity into the leadership culture of the most powerful military on Earth during a war against a Muslim-majority country. He’s gutting the chaplain corps’ diversity, praying for violence against enemies framed as enemies of God, and doing it all from the office of the Secretary of Defense. When the Pope himself says God rejects the prayers of those waging war, that should tell you how far outside the mainstream this is. EVEN by the standards of the faith Hegseth claims to champion.
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