Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth led a Christian service at the Pentagon on Wednesday ― an event one former Defense Department lawyer called “incredibly problematic.”
Hegseth’s prayer meeting in the auditorium during work hours “appeared to be a first for a Pentagon chief,” Reuters wrote.
“This is precisely where I need to be, and I think exactly where we need to be as a nation, at this moment,” Hegseth said, per The New York Times. “In prayer, on bended knee recognizing the providence of our lord and savior Jesus Christ.”
Hegseth said the meeting was voluntary and could become a monthly event, The Times noted. But critics questioned the legality of it.
A brochure titled “Secretary of Defense Christian Prayer & Worship Service” featured the seal of the Department of Defense, suggesting that Hegseth and the government sponsored it, retired Air Force Lt. Col. Rachel VanLandingham, now a law professor, told CNN. That could be a breach of the First Amendment’s ban on the government promoting a religion.
