Pete Hegseth urges prayer for Iran war victory ‘in the name of Jesus Christ‘
US Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, during his monthly Christian worship service in the Pentagon, prayed for “overwhelming force and victory over our enemies, in the name of Jesus Christ”. At a news conference yesterday, he drew parallels between the rescue of an American airman from behind enemy lines in Iran, to the Easter story, saying he was: “Shot down on a Friday, Good Friday. Hidden in a cave, a crevice, all of Saturday. And rescued on Sunday. Flown out of Iran as the sun was rising on Easter Sunday. A pilot reborn. All home and accounted for, a nation rejoicing. God is good.” Pete Hegseth is a member of the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches, a theologically conservative church network whose founder identifies as a Christian nationalist.
US Military bishop: ‘hard to cast this war as sponsored by the Lord’
Archbishop Timothy Broglio, the Catholic archbishop serving the Archdiocese for US Military Services, has said that the US / Israeli war in Iran is unjust and advised Catholic service members in a moral dilemma to “do as little harm as you can.” His comments came in an interview for “Face the Nation” on CBS news. The Archbishop, who is also president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, was asked to comment on Pete Hegseth’s invoking of Jesus to justify the war. He said: “It’s a little bit problematic in the sense that the Lord Jesus certainly brought a message of peace … I do think that it’s hard to cast this war as something that would be sponsored by the Lord”. He said he would agree with Pope Leo, who has been urging negotiation.
President Trump’s Easter message: ‘religion is growing again in our country’
President Trump issued an Easter message in a film for the White House website, saying it was a time to celebrate the resurrection of faith and religion in America, as churches will be full of younger and more faithful people than for many years. He said: “religion is growing again in our country for the first time in decades”. A message published on the White House website, said President Trump “stands as a fierce defender of the Christian faith” and the US is “beacon of liberty, honouring the Biblical values and heritage that built our nation”. It records his establishment of the White House Faith Office, led by televangelist and Trump’s faith adviser, Paula McCain, who organised a prayer event for him last Wednesday in the Oval Office. Around 20 evangelical leaders prayed for wisdom and guidance in leadership, protection for the president and US troops, and strength during the Iran conflict. This was the second prayer meeting around Trump in a month. President Trump has said that unless Iran opens the Strait of Hormuz, “Iran, the entire country, can be taken out in one night” and that might be tonight.
Telegraph: ‘Trump’s reckless war is underpinned by bad theology’
Tim Stanley argues in The Telegraph that “Trump’s reckless war is underpinned by bad theology”. He says “Europeans cannot comprehend what this administration is doing, without understanding how a right-wing evangelical thinks”, and he explores their ideas particularly on Israel and its place in the end times. He says: “when critics warn of a ‘Christian Nationalism’ in the Trump White House, or that ‘Christian Zionists’ are dictating foreign policy – it’s really the latest manifestation of old ideas, coalescing into a political force since the 1970s, their present influence no surprise when roughly 25 per cent of Americans describe themselves as evangelicals”. Article here
Rising from despair is theme in US church leaders’ messages
The Presiding bishop of the Episcopalian church in the USA, Sean Rowe, said in his Easter message that the story was about God having power to turn death into life and despair into hope, even in a world “groaning with despair”. He said: “This Easter, our world badly needs to hear this message. As we embrace our vocation to proclaim the resurrection, I pray that God gives us the courage to withstand the sin and violence in our midst and the grace to watch for Jesus in the most unlikely places”. Bishop Tracy Malone, President of the Council of Bishops of the United Methodist Church, said Christians are forced to face realities: “Each day, we choose not to be paralyzed by fear or consumed by despair. We choose not to surrender to injustice, division, or hopelessness. Instead, we rise with Christ”, to love more boldly, lead with courage, “stand for justice and extend compassion”.
UK Church leaders use Easter messages to urge end to war
Pope Leo called on world leaders to lay down their weapons and “those who have the power to unleash wars” to choose peace achieved through dialogue. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Sarah Mullally called for an “end to violence and destruction in Middle East” and for all people in the region to receive peace, justice and freedom. The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell told his congregation that there must be an “end to this pointless conflict” and the world “thirsts” for peace and justice. And the Archbishop of Westminster, Richard Moth, said humanity is scarred by warfare and injustice, but the message from Jesus at Eastre was “peace be with you”. More here. The King has been criticised for not releasing an Easter message, but the BBC’s royal correspondent explained that this is not a tradition – the late Queen only issued one Easter message in her reign.
The ‘Times View’: Christianity increasingly oppressed outside the West
The Times publishes an anonymous opinion piece drawing attention to the persecution of Christians worldwide. It says after the freedom with which Easter was marked last weekend: “It is all too easy for those afforded the protections of liberal democracies to take that security for granted. Though the world’s 2.5 billion Christians still constitute its largest religion, they are increasingly oppressed outside the West. Human rights infringements have become particularly acute in the Middle East and north Africa, where Christians stand out as an increasingly harassed minority.”. The Times View is here
Converts to Christianity explored
Madeleine Davies, writing in The Times, has interviewed a selection of new young converts to Christianity, exploring a “vibe shift” where Christianity is discussed more in society. Among her interviewees are young people moving from atheism to a place of faith, a young man finding meaning in the Orthodox tradition and an Iranian convert who had a vision of Jesus. She reports that the best that can be said by sociologists of religion is that the continuing decline in those who identify as Christian, or any religion, “has seemingly come to a halt”. Article is here.
BBC’s Pilgrimage series charts route to Holy Island, Lindisfarne
The BBC’s latest series of “Pilgrimage”, started its three week run on Easter Saturday on BBC2. Seven well known personalities of differing faiths and beliefs set off on a 390 km journey across northeast England, heading for the Holy Island of Lindisfarne. Their route took them along trails celebrating three of England’s seventh-century northern saints – Hild, Oswald and Cuthbert. The seven are: Ashley Banjo, Ashley Blaker, Hasan Al-Habib, Tasha Ghouri, Hermione Norris, Jayne Middlemiss and Patsy Kensit. The series is available on BBC iplayer here.
Three men remanded in custody after Golders Green ambulance attack
Three men have been remanded in custody charged with arson, after four Jewish charity ambulances were set on fire in Golders Green last week. Hamza Iqbal aged 20, Rehan Khan aged 19, both from Leyton, east London; and a 17-year-old boy, of dual British-Pakistani nationality, from Walthamstow, appeared at Westminster Magistrates Court on Saturday.
