That combative old hymn, Onward Christian Soldiers, is not much heard these days, though it was once a favourite with church congregations and school assemblies. Written in 1865 by Sabine Baring-Gould, an English clergyman and religious scholar, its belligerent refrain urges the faithful on to battle, victory and conquest: “Onward, Christian soldiers / Marching as to war / With the cross of Jesus / Going on before!” Its martial tone suited the Victorian zeitgeist but it made succeeding generations uneasy (though it was still sung in my primary school in the early 1960s). Nowadays, this sort of triumphalism gives religion a bad name.
Pete Hegseth, US defence secretary, and a leading Christian soldier, would certainly disagree. He probably hums it on his way to work. At a recent Christian worship service in the Pentagon – an irregular event, given the constitution’s dislike of anything smacking of state religion – Hegseth, referencing Iran, prayed for “overwhelming violence of action against those who deserve no mercy”. Hegseth’s creed is killing. He describes Iranians as “religious fanatics”. And he should know. His intolerant brand of evangelical Christian nationalism is extreme even by US standards – yet has Donald Trump’s backing. Trump was a Presbyterian until 2020, when he abruptly declared he wasn’t. God knows what he is now.
Exploitation of Christian belief for political and military ends is a long-established, shabby US practice. Yet there’s a darkly obnoxious underside. Implicit in the official demonisation and dehumanisation of the Iranian nation is fear and loathing of otherness, in this case Shia Muslims. In one of his first acts as president in 2017, Trump banned immigrants from several Muslim-majority countries, and has continued in that hateful vein.
For most practising Christians, the misappropriation, distortion and weaponisation of faith to justify death and destruction, sow divisions, excuse war crimes and bomb Iran “back to the stone ages” is deeply saddening. Christians – who celebrate Easter on Sunday – believe Jesus was crucified for the sake of all mankind, for the forgiveness of sins, not for vindictive vengeance, pride and domination. Pope Leo spoke for many beyond the Catholic church at a Palm Sunday mass in Rome in forcefully rejecting attempts by zealots such as Hegseth to conscript Christianity. “No one can use [Jesus] to justify war,” he said, quoting Isaiah. War-makers’ prayers would go unanswered. “Your hands are full of blood.”
In reality the American population chose this insane administration, so it’s not the administration alone, it’s the majority of the American people.
But on the upside, with USA pulling out as the global leader, the world might actually become a better place, where China and EU with much greater respect for national sovereignty and international law will have bigger influence.
USA has a tradition of not respecting international law, this is not just the current administration, it was also Obama, who spied on allies illegally, and send drones into Pakistan and other countries illegally and caused 70000 civilian deaths.
IDK why USA lost the respect for the law to that degree, American administrations also have a tradition of not respecting national laws, the current administration is just being the most obvious about it. But among previous administrations we know Nixon for Watergate, and Reagan for the Iran contra affair, I think Reagan may even have gained popularity from the Iran contra affair, for sure it had no political negative consequences, showing the public didn’t really give care about the law either.
USA is a country where morality and respect for the law has been in decline for decades. The idea of individual freedom has become so excessive that sociopaths and disrespect for the law are things that are celebrated.