Religious warfare rhetoric emerges in conflict with Iran

As the Iran conflict escalates, religious rhetoric – from claims of divine missions to apocalyptic prophecy – is increasingly shaping the language and politics of war, writes Mark Beeson.

IT WAS PROBABLY only a matter of time before God and/or his Son appeared in the discourse surrounding the Iran conflict.

Indeed, many Christian evangelicals in the United States – the principal aggressor in the current conflict – think that their country is on a mission from God and that conflict with Iran is an essential precursor of Christ’s second coming.

I’m an agnostic, so I may not be the best person to offer theological commentary, but it does seem a bit of a coincidence that even in a global era, religious beliefs have a striking degree of geographical determinism. Where you’re born is still a stronger indicator of religious beliefs – or that lack of them – than a dispassionate analysis of the ever-expanding array of spiritual practices and beliefs on offer.

I don’t mean to trivialise this as I’m painfully aware that many people take religious beliefs terribly seriously. As Salman Rushdie and the editors of the French magazine Charlie Hebdo discovered, you literally take your life in your hands if you offend true believers.

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What’s interesting about the current conflict, however, is that there is clearly more going on than simply the usual concerns with the “balance of power”, nuclear proliferation or the other staples of international relations theory and practise. On the contrary, our possible relationship with God or his various representatives and spokesmen – they do all seem to be men – on Earth is a surprisingly prominent part of the discussion.

However, as Ayatollah Khomeini discovered, being a devoted servant of God and a true believer is no protection against a hegemonic power motivated by the presumption that might makes right — and lots of very accurate guided missiles, of course. Having some sort of theological back-up adds a useful layer of transcendental legitimacy for what might otherwise simply be seen as illegal and unjustifiable acts that violate political and moral norms.

This may account for one of the more astonishing and improbable features of the contemporary world order: the most powerful man in the world and his Secretary of War, both seem to think they are doing God’s work.

Donald Trump, the convicted felon, serial confabulator, sex pest and increasingly enthusiastic war-monger, claims that God is “proud” of him. I’m not sure how God communicated this idea to the U.S. President, but Trump’s not an obvious choice for this sort of accolade. It’s one thing to think that narrowly avoiding a potential assassin’s bullet may indicate divine intervention; it’s quite another to start hearing voices.

Unfortunately, Trump’s not the only one who’s been having epiphanies. U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth also thinks he’s on a crusade and even has the tattoos to prove it. He also holds monthly prayer meetings and weekly sessions of Bible study at the Pentagon.

As a consequence, some senior officers are encouraging their subordinates to believe that the conflict with Iran was foretold in the Book of Revelation. This has resulted in complaints from the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, which is concerned that Hegseth is not simply wrong but ignores the reality that not all military personnel are Christians.

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Undeterred, Hegseth has been aggressively pursuing an increasingly brutal campaign against Iran, which is literally taking no prisoners. On the contrary, even the pointless slaughter of young schoolgirls is simply brushed off by the Secretary of War, who claims it’s being “investigated”. I’m no theologian, but I don’t think murdering children is approved behaviour, is it?

Although, Lord knows, there was an awful lot of indiscriminate smiting going on in the Old Testament, from which many still draw inspiration.

It’s hard to escape the conclusion that quite a lot of people, especially Christian Zionists like Mike Huckabee, U.S. ambassador to Israel, think this is a heaven-sent opportunity to smash Iran and its people, not only nullifying an old-fashioned strategic threat, but paving the way for the Second Coming.

They have also been influential opponents of a negotiated settlement with Iran over its nuclear technology, which may explain why the latest bombing campaign started while negotiations were still in progress.

North Korea’s Kim Jong-Un must be breathing a sigh of relief, though. Despite being a genuine threat to the American mainland, it is clear that already possessing some nuclear weapons and being a Godless heathen does seem to be the best way of avoiding the wrath of Donald and Pete.

Alternatively, worried national leaders and aspiring despots everywhere could take a lesson from Australia: never criticise the Americans, whatever they do, and always support them no matter how improbable, self-defeating, ill-advised, merciless or misguided their policies may be. After all, it could all be part of “God’s divine plan”.

Mark Beeson is an adjunct professor at the University of Technology Sydney and Griffith University. He was previously Professor of International Politics at the University of Western Australia.