Is This a Holy War?

For centuries, religious conviction has served as both the spark and the fuel for some of humanity's most devastating conflicts. The medieval Crusades. The Thirty Years' War. The violent partition of India and Pakistan. In each case, grievances became supercharged when wrapped in the language of God's will.

Now, as military action continues in Iran and across the Middle East, some are concerned we could be headed for another faith-inspired conflict over the holy land – this one with potentially devastating consequences.

It's not a comfortable thought, but there’s enough evidence that it’s one worth exploring. 

"The Providence of Almighty God"

Even after the assassination of Ayatollah Khamenei, Iran remains ruled by a theocratic government that adheres to conservative Islamic principles. Yet, the most immediate signs that religious belief is shaping this conflict don’t come from Tehran. They come from Washington. 

In a recent interview with 60 Minutes, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth acknowledged openly that he views the current conflict through a lens of faith. 

When asked whether he sees the war in religious terms, he invoked "the providence of Almighty God" as a protective force over U.S. troops and called himself “a man of faith who encourages our troops to lean into their faith, rely on God.” He alsp repeated an often-heard line: “there are no atheists in foxholes.”

Christian Zionism in Action?

Could these simply be attempts to boost morale among the troops? Or is there a deeper religious view behind them? 

We wrote recently about Christian Zionism, a theological framework held by tens of millions of American evangelical Christians, and one that some experts believe has shaped U.S. foreign policy around Israel and the Middle East for decades.

Notably, skeptics dug into the archives and found a 2018 speech Hegseth delivered in Jerusalem. In that speech, he expressed optimism that a Third Temple might one day be rebuilt on Jerusalem's Temple Mount – currently home to the Dome of the Rock, one of Islam's holiest sites.

"There's no reason why the miracle of re-establishing the temple on the Temple Mount is not possible," he said.

That quote might sound abstract to some, but according to certain Christian teachings, the rebuilding of a Third Temple in Jerusalem is a specific and necessary precursor to the end times: the reign of the Antichrist, the Tribulation, and ultimately the Second Coming of Christ. 

Where exactly Hegseth and his religious teachings stand on the matter is unclear, but his recent faith invocations and past comments will no doubt serve as cause for speculation. 

"Anointed by Jesus to Light the Signal Fire"

If Hegseth's comments raised eyebrows, the reports emerging from within the military itself are raising alarm bells.

We wrote last week about hundreds of active service members filing complaints alleging that they were being told – in official military settings – that the conflict with Iran is “part of God’s divine plan.” 

One complaint described a commander informing non-commissioned officers during a briefing that the president had been "anointed by Jesus to light the signal fire in Iran" for Armageddon and Christ's return.

But it’s not just military commanders sharing these views. Senator Lindsey Graham has also publicly characterized the conflict as "a religious war" – framing it as clash between radical Islamic terrorists and those they consider infidels, particularly Jews and Christians. 

Hegseth backed this point as well, saying: “Obviously, we're fighting religious fanatics who seek a nuclear capability in order for some religious Armageddon.”

Now you might be thinking, “wait, I thought the Armageddon prophecy was a Christian thing. What exactly is he referring to?”

The Mahdi and a Nuclear Weapon

The dominant belief system in Iran is Twelver Shia Islam, which teaches that the twelfth imam – Muhammad al-Mahdi – has been in a state of divine concealment since the ninth century, and will return at the end of days to restore justice to the world. 

This is not a fringe belief; it is mainstream teaching held sincerely by millions of faithful Muslims who have no interest in violence whatsoever.

The more contested question is whether any Iranian leaders have connected this belief in the Mahdi with state violence ...or the country's nuclear ambitions. Some experts have argued that hardline figures within the Iranian government view the acquisition of nuclear weapons as a fulfillment of religious prophecy. 

Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad invoked the Mahdi's return publicly during his tenure, comments which drew significant international attention and concern.

However, the link between Mahdist theology and Iranian nuclear policy remains highly debated. Many Islamic scholars insist that their religious teachings do not encourge the pursuit of violence in any sense – let alone the apocalyptic, end of the world type. 

Holy War Incoming?

None of this means WWIII is inevitable, or that every leader involved in this conflict is primarily motivated by theology. But the fact remains that some leaders on both sides of this war view the conflict through a religious lens.

For those with a wider view of history, that alone is a dangerous prospect.

It also raises some obvious questions. When leaders on multiple sides of a modern conflict begin framing it in explicitly religious and end-times terms – how worried should the rest of us be? 

And even if this war finds a resolution, what do these underlying beliefs mean for the next war?