The United States Army defends the presence of a color guard at a national religious conference for Christianity that included Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as the keynote speaker, calling its presence “patriotic” and “neutral” from endorsing particular beliefs.
The National Religious Broadcasters (NRB), the self-described largest association of Christian communicators, welcomed Hegseth to orate to during its NRB Freedom 250 Celebration on Feb. 19, as part of its broader 2026 International Christian Media Convention at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center in Nashville, Tenn.
The celebration of 250 years of American independence, according to the NRB, “brought together national leaders, Christian voices, and cultural influencers for an evening honoring the faith foundations of the American experiment and the enduring call to live as ‘one nation under God.’”
The evening opened with a ceremonial color guard, the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) Band directed by Chief Warrant Officer 2 Martin R. Johnston on behalf of the Commanding Gen. Maj. Gen. David Gardner, according to an itinerary issued by the NRB days in advance.
Color Guard Appearance Was 'Neutral'
According to the Army's own ceremonial and musical support page on its website, the sidebar includes a drop-down menu titled, "What We Cannot Support,” with two bullet points iterating the following:
Support for or during a religious service (although on-post chaplaincy mission is supported).
Events that would be detrimental to the interests or values of the armed forces.
Military.com asked the Army about the presence of the color guard and whether it was at odds with the service’s own public messaging about what it can and cannot support.
“The NRB Freedom 250 Event was a nonpartisan community event open to the general public,” Maj. Jonathon Bless, a spokesperson for the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), told Military.com. “Department of War and Army regulations allow for military support to community events, including those hosted by religious organizations—so long as the military support is neutral and does not imply endorsement of a particular religion.
“The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) supported this event with an Honor Guard and the Division Band, who played the national anthem and honors to Sec. Hegseth during the convention’s opening ceremony. The support provided by the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) was solely intended to show general patriotic support honoring 250 years of our nation.”
Military.com reached out to the NRB for comment.
Hegseth Attacks DEI, Climate Change, Transgender Troops
Hegseth’s remarks to the Nashville crowd praised President Donald Trump for “once again supporting and training our troops and tending to their spiritual health."
"As long as I have breath, I commit to you that I and we should NEVER allow any group—no matter how large or small—to silence us from speaking the capital “T” TRUTH: Christ is King. He died for our sins. We are forgiven. He will come again in glory. Amen," Hegseth said on Thursday.
Almost immediately after taking office for his second term, Trump banned transgender individuals from joining the U.S. Armed Forces and also removed current transgender active-duty members from service.
One line of Hegseth’s that reportedly garnered rousing applause was the following: “You see, we train our troops, we no longer trans our troops.”
He also used the pulpit to compare the Trump administration’s military policies to the previous Biden administration, saying in part that “the other side is fueled by godless and toxic ideologies, foreign to the western way of life, with tolerant hearts filled with rage and hate.”
“Gone is godless and divisive DEI [diversity, equity and inclusion], gone is gender-bending equity and quotas, gone is climate change worship to a false god,” Hegseth said. “We are one military, one fighting force, one nation under God. We are not, 'In woke we trust; we are, 'In God we trust.”
Hegseth also recited the prayer before Saturday's National Governors Association dinner at the White House, saying: "King Jesus, we come humbly before Your throne praising You for all the Providence You have bestowed upon this nation for over 250 years...One Nation Under God and, certainly, In God We Trust."
Pentagon Involvement in Christian-Only Services
The color guard’s appearance came two days after the Pentagon received scrutiny for platforming controversial pastor Doug Wilson during its monthly Christian prayer service.
Wilson, who shared a podium with Hegseth, in the past has made questionable remarks about discouraging women to vote, whether slavery was justified, and that he would “be more than happy to work with” the label as a Christian nationalist.
The White House defended Wilson’s appearance after the fact, as did Hegseth himself in social media posts. Also on Thursday, Hegseth defended the prayer service as a whole, saying the “left wing shrieks, which means we’re right over the target.”
Aside from Hegseth, Thursday's event included Seth Dillon, CEO of The Babylon Bee, as a featured speaker who took the podium after Hegseth.
Other participants, per the NRB, were John Amanchukwu who said a prayer described as both patriotic and praising Christian heritage tributes; Alexis Wilkins performing the national anthem and America the Beautiful; and Shine, Liberty University’s a cappella group, leading patriotic and traditional hymns. Alexis Wilkins is the girlfriend of FBI Director Kash Patel.
Matthew Potter of Pray.com was also present to announce updates affiliated with the America Prays initiative, and Lorenzo Sewell—a pro-Trump pastor from Detroit—concluded the evening with a “One Nation Under God” spoken word and closing prayer.
The Freedom 250 Celebration included the following partners: Coral Ridge Ministries, PragerU, and WallBuilders, and it was sponsored by Liberty University’s Standing for Freedom Center and Flash Point Army.
