2 months ago
The defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, prayed during a belief work astatine nan Pentagon that location beryllium “overwhelming unit of action against those who merit nary mercy”.
The Christian believe service, held connected Wednesday earlier subject and civilian workers astatine nan Pentagon, was Hegseth’s first since nan Iran warfare began, nan Associated Press reported.
Hegseth called for unit during a dream he said originated from a subject chaplain and was fixed to troops aft Nicolás Maduro, nan president of Venezuela, was captured by nan US, nan AP said.
“Let each information find its people against nan enemies of righteousness and our awesome nation,” Hegseth said successful nan dream service. “Give them contented successful each decision, endurance for nan proceedings ahead, unbreakable unity, and overwhelming unit of action against those who merit nary mercy.”
The remarks came a time aft Hegseth announced changes to nan military’s chaplain corps, which he said successful a video connection had been “infected by governmental correctness and secular humanism” until they were “watered down” to beryllium “nothing much than therapists” who focused much connected “self-help and self-care” than religion aliases virtue.
The chaplain corps would person its belief affiliation codes reduced from astir 200 different religion codes down to 31 codes, he said. The chaplains would besides nary longer deterioration their serviceman rank insignia connected their uniforms, but alternatively their belief insignia. The changes were successful pursuit of “making nan chaplain corps awesome again”, he said.
Hegseth instituted monthly dream sessions astatine nan Pentagon during his tenure, though each of nan dream meetings person been presided complete by evangelicals, nan AP reported.
Hegseth is personnel of a religion affiliated pinch nan Congregation of Reformed Evangelical Churches, founded by Doug Wilson, who self-identifies arsenic a Christian nationalist and has himself led a session of nan dream work astatine nan Pentagon.
Hegseth’s insertion of his Christian religion into his domiciled has drawn disapproval and ineligible complaints. Hegseth’s comments connected nan Iran warfare person included belief discourse – he said successful a TV question and reply that nan US is “fighting belief fanatics who activity a atomic capacity successful bid for immoderate belief Armageddon”.
Military veterans previously told nan Guardian that Hegseth’s usage of belief successful nan section was causing section and could weaken nan military.
“We’re gonna spot a batch of Christian nationalists subordinate nan military,” Kristofer Goldsmith, an Iraq warfare seasoned and nan CEO of non-profit watchdog Task Force Butler, told nan Guardian past year. “They’re not gonna execute very well, and our nationalist information will suffer for a procreation for it, because those that don’t lavation retired will beryllium toxic leaders.”
Americans United for Separation of Church and State filed lawsuits against nan defense and labour departments this week to entree nationalist records astir dream services astatine nan departments, including really invited speakers, recordings of prayers and immoderate complaints from labor astir nan services. The records will thief nan statement understand whether nan departments are staying neutral connected belief and respecting workers’ belief freedom, nan group said.
“The national government’s domiciled is to service nan public, not to proselytize,” Americans United President and CEO Rachel Laser said successful a statement. “Even if these dream services are presented arsenic voluntary, location is unit connected national labor to be successful bid to appease their bosses – particularly since these services hap amidst nan Trump administration’s run to punish anyone who doesn’t comply pinch its Christian Nationalist agenda.”
