US soldiers speak of Armageddon – claims we can do without in the Iran war

A US Military Commander told his unit last week that the Iran war will “cause Armageddon” and the return of Christ.

In a complaint to a non-profit Military Religious Freedom Foundation opposed to religious influence in the military, a non-commissioned officer quoted their commander from last Monday.

“This morning our commander opened up the combat readiness status briefing by urging us to not be “afraid” as to what is happening with our combat operations in Iran right now. He 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. He said that “President Trump has been anointed by Jesus to light the signal fire in Iran to cause Armageddon and mark his return to Earth.”

MRFF claims to have received over 200 calls from more than 50 military installations across all the services since Saturday, reporting pronouncements from their “Christian zealot commanders.”

Pete Hegseth, the Secretary of War in the Trump cabinet, invited pastor Doug Wilson to preach in the Pentagon last month. Wilson, who preaches a “Christian nationalist” message, including that America should be officially Christian, and women should not vote, has planted a network of churches, one in Washington, which Hegseth attends. CNN reported, “A source who attended the service told CNN Wilson’s message was ‘pretty vanilla’ and steered clear of political rhetoric. Attendees didn’t hear Wilson’s stance on women in the military and in combat.” [A reader has asked for a clarification: Wilson wants “Household voting with any man present to control the vote, women living without a man in the house could still vote.]

It seems odd to suggest that Doug Wilson might be an example of restraint. But other Christians in the US military, especially those engaged in active duty, should keep their more extreme views to themselves.

Image: Residential district in central Tehran after an attack in March 2026. Image Credit: Hossein Zohrevand Tasnim News Agency / Wikimedia

Correction: in one sentence, “Iraq’ was mistakenly used instead of “Iran”