Megyn Kelly Criticizes Pete Hegseth’s Religious Rhetoric in Military Strategy: A Controversial Debate

Megyn Kelly has taken aim at Pete Hegseth, her former colleague from Fox News, for his frequent references to religion during speeches related to wartime issues.

Kelly, who identifies as a lifelong Roman Catholic, expressed her disapproval of Hegseth’s approach towards the end of Thursday’s episode of The Megyn Kelly Show.

While she acknowledged her general admiration for Hegseth, Kelly clarified that she did not appreciate his frequent mentions of God, Jesus, and the Bible when discussing military strategies from the Pentagon.

“It makes me very uneasy. Very,” she remarked to conservative podcaster Britt Mayer.

Kelly expressed a preference for a more straightforward approach, similar to that of U.S. General Dan “Raizin” Caine, who sticks to the facts. She added that while religion plays a significant role in Hegseth’s life, which she respects, she is not in favor of its prominence in military discussions.

Kelly quickly added that such language ‘doesn’t belong when you’re talking about our plans to wipe out people, including possible civilians.’ She pointed to past rhetoric from Donald Trump before playing a clip of Hegseth from earlier in the day.

‘These two things do not belong together, and I just – I’m really uncomfortable with it,’ she said again, before cuing the clip.

Kelly prefaced that ‘if Joe Biden did this through his Pentagon, I would have ripped him a new one’.

Megyn Kelly took aim at her former Fox News colleague and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth over his insistence on using religious language while discussing the war with Iran 

She pointed to a clip from a Pentagon press briefing where Hegseth invoked scripture to take a stab at the media’s coverage of the conflict in Iran

Hegseth was then heard recalling how ‘this past Sunday, I was sitting in church with my family, and our minister preached from the Book of Mark, the third chapter.

‘And in the passage, Jesus entered a synagogue and healed a man with a withered hand,’ Hegseth read.   

‘The Pharisees came to watch. And as the scripture reads, they came to see whether he, Jesus, would heal him – or he would heal him on the Sabbath so that they might accuse him,’ he continued.

The Pharisees – an ancient Jewish sect Hegseth described as the ‘self-appointed elites’ of the era – had hearts too ‘hardened’ to acknowledge Christ, Hegseth said.

‘They were only there to explain away the goodness in pursuit of their agenda.’

Hegseth – a Fox News star from 2014 to 2024 – quickly likened the Pharisees to ‘our press.’ 

‘Not all of you. Not all of you,’ he said. ‘But the legacy Trump-hating press.’

Hegseth – a practicing Christian – also drew criticism for a presentation the day before, during which he mistook a monologue from 1994 classic ‘Pulp Fiction’ for real biblical verse to be referenced. 

Since becoming defense chief, Hegseth has found no shortage of ways to bring his faith into the Pentagon. Pictured: L-R) Rep Jason Crow (D-CO), Sen.Joni Ernst (R-IA), House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Hegseth and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) pray on June 26, 2025

Kelly, a Fox star for 12 years until 2017, groaned after playing the Thursday clip. 

Mayer, the host of The Britt Mayer Show, agreed the speech made her ‘uncomfortable.’ 

The criticism comes as the administration faces pushback from Catholics over the White House’s increasingly fractured relationship with the pope. 

It also comes as Hegseth has repeatedly sought to bring his Christian faith into the Pentagon since becoming defense chief. Promotional videos from the department have displayed Bible verse alongside defense department military footage, for instance.

Hegseth also hosts monthly Christian worship services at the Defense Department, which now boasts the secondary title of Department of War.

Critics have pointed out how Hegseth’s Christian messaging seems at odds with his rhetoric on Iran.

During a March 13 briefing, Hegseth said he would give ‘no quarter’ to the enemy -a phrase widely understood to mean taking no prisoners and killing them instead.

Pope Leo XIV, meanwhile, has made several general appeals for peace since the conflict began on February 28 – earning ire from the administration.

Kelly’s guest, conservative podcaster Britt Mayer (right), agreed with her sentiment and described Hegseth’s religious language as ‘uncomfortable’ in the context of war

Trump responded by calling the religious leader too ‘weak on crime’ and a ‘liberal.’ He has refused to apologize. 

Pope Leo, the first US-born pontiff, responded t during the first day of his trip to Africa on Monday, telling reporters he had ‘no fear of the Trump administration.’

Kelly, meanwhile, said she helped Hegseth ‘get’ his ‘job’ during her critique.

A longtime Trump supporter, she broke with the president in February over the conflict. The Mail has approached both her and Hegseth’s office for comment.