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On January 24, 2025, Pete Hegseth was confirmed as Secretary of Defense in a narrow 51-50 Senate vote, with Vice President JD Vance casting the tie-breaking vote. This confirmation has significant implications for the Pentagon and the U.S. military, given Hegseth's deeply rooted Christian nationalist beliefs.

Hegseth’s Christian Nationalist Ideology

Hegseth has openly endorsed “Sphere Sovereignty,” a doctrine that posits distinct God-ordained societal roles, including a strict separation of spheres for family, church, and government. However, in the hands of Christian Reconstructionists, this idea morphs into a framework where civil government is subordinated to biblical law. This belief system, largely developed by R.J. Rushdoony, Greg Bahnsen, and Gary North, advocates for the application of Old Testament law in modern society, including capital punishment for offenses such as homosexuality, adultery, and blasphemy.

In newly unearthed recordings, Hegseth rails against democracy itself, claiming that America’s founders rejected it as dangerous. He also describes public schools as an “egalitarian, dystopian LGBT nightmare,” mirroring the Reconstructionist belief that education should be a religious endeavor rather than a public good. His rejection of pluralism and secular governance aligns closely with far-right religious leaders such as Douglas Wilson, who promotes a Christian theocracy where non-Christian religions are banned from public life.

The Militarization of Christian Extremism

Hegseth’s beliefs do not exist in a vacuum; they are interwoven with his vision for the U.S. military. His statements indicate an intent to remake the Pentagon into an explicitly Christian institution, eradicating diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and purging “woke” military leaders. He has vowed to fire generals who support policies he deems politically correct and to refocus the military on “lethality” and “meritocracy”.

Read the rest of our blog post about Pete Hegseth at our website: https://sacrilegiousdiscourse.com/blog/pete-hegseth-and-the-rise-of-extremist-christian-nationalism-in-the-pentagon

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