Eyebrows were raised after U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth invited controversial Idaho Pastor Doug Wilson, a self-proclaimed Christian nationalist, to lead the Pentagon’s prayer service on Tuesday.
"Thank you for your leadership, your mentorship for the things you've started, the truth you've told, the willingness to be bold," Hegseth told Wilson on stage as service members and government employees looked on. "It's the type of thing we are trying to exercise here."
Wilson is the founder of Christ Church in Moscow, Idaho. He has been vocal about his views, which some say are controversial. The pastor doesn’t believe women should have the right to vote, Premier Christian News previously reported.
“When women were granted the right to vote, the nation had already accepted the lie that a nation is nothing more than a collection of individuals...we thought we were giving the franchise to women when we were in fact taking it away from families,” he previously said.
He also faced significant backlash for claims that enslaved people in the South had an “affectionate” relationship with their owners.
According to the Spokesman-Review, Wilson’s prayer message at the Pentagon focused on protection, the promises of God, and the power God has over people’s hearts and minds.
"We must always remember: God is God … and we are not,” Wilson said.
Wilson confirmed with the publication that Hegseth invited him to speak at the prayer service and that he was “honored” to do it.
"The church service was great. Bursting at the seams," Wilson said. "And the prayer meeting at the Pentagon was a great blessing. Really good."
However, the services have sparked criticism from military personnel and defense contractors.
“You don’t actually need evidence of retribution to find fault with the leader of a government agency inviting his employees for a prayer service. It’s inherently discriminatory,” an anonymous source told Military.com
The source went on: “It provides an opportunity for Christians to get face time and be in the room with higher-ups, perhaps interacting on a social level. Jews, Muslims, and other non-Christians are not provided this opportunity.”
Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell told the outlet: “The Secretary is a proud member of a church affiliated with the Congregation of Reformed Evangelical Churches (CREC), which was founded by Pastor Doug Wilson.
"The Secretary very much appreciates many of Mr. Wilson’s writings and teachings.”