Tehran, Iran – As the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran enters its fourth day, reports are emerging of a disturbing trend within the U.S. Military: commanders invoking religious justifications for the escalating conflict, with some allegedly telling troops the war is a fulfillment of biblical prophecy. The claims come as the death toll in Iran continues to climb, reaching at least 787 according to the Iranian Red Crescent Society as of Tuesday, and as the conflict expands to include attacks on U.S. Military targets and diplomatic facilities across the Middle East.
The Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) says it has received over 110 reports since Saturday of commanders framing the war as divinely ordained. According to the MRFF, one combat-unit commander reportedly told noncommissioned officers (NCOs) that President Donald Trump was “anointed by Jesus to light the signal fire in Iran to cause Armageddon and mark his return to Earth.”
Mikey Weinstein, founder and president of the MRFF, described the situation as unprecedented. “Our MRFF clients report the unrestricted euphoria of their commanders and command chains as to how this fresh ‘biblically-sanctioned’ war is clearly the undeniable sign of the expeditious approach of the fundamentalist Christian ‘End Times’ as vividly described in the New Testament Book of Revelation,” Weinstein said, according to reporting by Jonathan Larsen.
One NCO, who remained anonymous out of fear of reprisal, told the MRFF that his commander “urged us to tell our troops that this was ‘all part of God’s divine plan’ and he specifically referenced numerous citations out of the Book of Revelation referring to Armageddon and the imminent return of Jesus Christ.” The NCO added that the commander’s demeanor was particularly unsettling, stating, “He had a huge grin on his face when he said all of this, which made his message seem even more crazy.”
The reports span more than 40 different units across at least 30 military installations, encompassing all branches of the U.S. Military, Larsen reported. The NCO who contacted the MRFF identified as a Christian but said he was acting on behalf of 15 troops, including Muslim and Jewish service members, who felt their commanders’ remarks were damaging to morale and violated their oaths to uphold the Constitution.
The alleged behavior of military commanders comes amid a shift in the Pentagon’s approach to religious expression under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Hegseth, an evangelical Christian, has been criticized for promoting Christian nationalist viewpoints within the military, including hosting Christian prayer services at the Pentagon and inviting controversial figures like fundamentalist pastor Doug Wilson since taking office.
Experts note that the invocation of religious justifications for military action is not new in American history. George W. Bush famously used “crusade” rhetoric following the September 11th attacks. However, the current situation, according to pastor and theologian Josh Olds, represents a more overt embrace of apocalyptic theology within the upper echelons of the U.S. Government. “While America’s relationship with Iran is influenced by all the typical geopolitical factors of oil, culture, and nuclear weaponry, there is a part of American foreign policy that is influenced by apocalyptic evangelical theology,” Olds wrote for Baptist News Global.
The conflict began on Saturday with the joint U.S.-Israeli killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei . Since then, Iran has retaliated with attacks on Israel, Arab states, and U.S. Military targets, including an incident in Kuwait where three American fighter aircraft were mistakenly shot down by Kuwaiti forces, though all six pilots ejected safely . The U.S. Has closed its embassies in Riyadh and Kuwait due to security concerns, and has ordered non-emergency personnel to depart from several other countries in the region .
As of Tuesday, six U.S. Service members have been killed since the start of the war . The conflict has also led to widespread disruption, including canceled flights, deadly protests, suspended shipping, and soaring oil prices. President Trump has stated that the U.S. Operation is expected to last “four to five weeks” but could go “far longer,” while Defense Secretary Hegseth has asserted that the war will not be “endless” and that the U.S. Goal is not regime change.
