Pete Hegseth, US Secretary of Defense.
Ezekiel 25:17 with a Tarantino-style twist. Hegseth once again combines violence with religion, this time, with a passage from the “saint” Jules (Samuel L. Jackson) uttered exactly before killing another man.
The Secretary of Defense of the United States once again sparked controversy after quoting, practically word for word, a very violent prayer that appears in one of the most memorable scenes in the cult film Pulp Fiction, by Quentin Tarantino. The problem? Pete Hegseth thought he was reading a passage from the Bible.
The gaffe occurred during one of the Christian services that the “renamed” secretary of war has promoted at the Pentagon, in the context of war with Iran.
The passage read this Wednesday, presented by Hegseth as inspired by Ezekiel 25:17omitted reference to the fact that the text was adapted almost entirely from the monologue performed by Samuel Jackson in the film, immediately before the character commits… a murder. “Pray with me, please,” he told the audience, before quoting:
The reading differs considerably from the Bible passage referred to by Hegseth. Yes, it is practically the same as Tarantino’s interpretation — adapting some expressions to the military context.
Hegseth told the audience that he had spoken with Admiral Brad Cooper, responsible for US forces during the conflict with Iran, about how religious teachings influence political and military decisions. The secretary later added that this conversation had reminded him of a prayer that had been conveyed to him by the head of a recent combat search and rescue mission, aimed at locating and rescuing Air Force crew members shot down in Iran.
Hegseth stated that the prayer was called “CSAR 2517” and described it as partially inspired by the biblical verse Ezekiel 25:17.
Among other changes, note a, “the way of the righteous man” was replaced by “the path of the downed aviator”and in the final sentence the secretary of the Trump administration changed “you will know that my name is the Lord” to “you will know that my call sign is Sandy 1”.
This would not have been the first time that Hegseth had resorted to violent language in religious ceremonies related to war. Earlier, last month, he prayed that the military force would receive “clear and fair targets for violence”.
The controversy has also led to particularly harsh reactions within Christian circles. Christopher Hale, editor of the Catholic newsletter Letters from Leo, wrote on the social network X that “Pete Hegseth is doing to Christianity what Al-Qaeda did to Islam.”
The episode comes at an already sensitive moment for Donald Trump and his political circle among part of the Christian electorate. In recent weeks, the US President has faced criticism for aggressive statements about Iran made on Easter Sunday, by , who criticized the war, and for sharing images generated by artificial intelligence in which .
So far, the Pentagon has not publicly responded to the case.
