In an event that Military.com notes "pushes the boundaries" of the Constitution's prohibition on a state religion, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth led an evangelical Christian prayer service at the Pentagon on Wednesday, during working hours, that included praise for President Trump as divinely appointed. The "Secretary of Defense Christian Prayer & Worship Service" was held in the Pentagon's packed auditorium and carried live on its internal TV network. "This is precisely where I need to be, exactly where we need to be as a nation at this moment, in prayer, on bended knee, recognizing the providence of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ," Hegseth said in opening the service, per CNN.
It's highly unusual for the secretary to host an event during the workday for any particular religion, current and former defense officials said. Hegseth said he wants to make it a monthly event. The main speaker Wednesday was Brooks Potteiger, pastor of Hegseth's church in Tennessee, per the New York Times. "We pray for our leaders who you have sovereignly appointed—for President Trump, thank you for the way that you have used him to bring stability and moral clarity to our land," Potteiger told the gathering. "And we pray that you would continue to protect him, bless him, give him great wisdom."
The Pentagon provides services for employees of varying faiths but not hosted by the secretary of defense, held in the auditorium, or broadcast live throughout the department. Nor are they promoted the way Wednesday's was, per CNN, which saw an email to defense employees encouraging them to attend in person. A brochure handed to people as they arrived bore the seal of the Department of Defense on the first page. Retired Air Force Lt. Col. Rachel VanLandingham, a law professor, said Hegseth problematically demonstrated "sponsorship in the true sense of the word, outside of funding—he's advocating for this, he is putting his weight of the official Office of the Secretary of Defense behind a particular religious event and inviting someone to the Pentagon to conduct it. That's wrong."
- The Defense Department posted a video of the service here.
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