In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor considers Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth's use of the English Standard Version of the Bible, patriarchy in the faith communities Hegseth has been a part of, and his Christian Nationalism. It also reveals that Hegseth's ESV Bible includes two Crusader symbols stamped onto the cover (and that match tattoos on his body): a Jerusalem Cross and the phrase "Deus Vult."

This is the second episode of "A Trick of State," a special occasional series from Dangerous Dogma. In this series, Kaylor investigates underexplored issues at the intersection of church and state that expose the false promises of Christian Nationalism. This episode includes interviews with sociologist Samuel Perry (author of Religion for Realists and coauthor of Taking America Back for God and The Flag and the Cross) and journalist Sarah Stankorb (author of Disobedient Women and the forthcoming Damned If She Does).

ABOVE: The Jerusalem Cross (left) and "Deus Vult" (right) on Pete Hegseth's Bible. (Instagram account of Rock Wall Bibles)

Here are a few pieces related to the episode:

• Study by Samuel Perry on "The Bible as a Product of Cultural Power: The Case of Gender Ideology in the English Standard Version"
• Study by Samuel Perry on "Whitewashing Evangelical Scripture: Intransitivity, Engaged Orthodoxy, and the Case of Slavery and Antisemitism in the English Standard Version"
• Coverage by Brian Kaylor on the Pentagon worship services
• Piece by Brian Kaylor on the fake story of George Washington's prayer at Valley Forge
• Article by Brian Kaylor on Hegseth's remarks at the 2026 National Prayer Breakfast

Note: Don't forget to subscribe to our award-winning e-newsletter A Public Witness that helps you make sense of faith, culture, and politics. And order the new book by Brian Kaylor, The Bible According to Christian Nationalists: Exploiting Scripture for Political Power.

Previous episode of "A Trick of State": Rewriting the Ten Commandments

This episode of Dangerous Dogma features a conversation between Word&Way Editor Brian Kaylor, Lutheran minister and journalist Angela Denker, and Disciples pastor and author Beau Underwood. The conversation includes discussion about the Iran war, Christian opposition to the war, and viral claims of military leaders claiming this will bring "Armageddon." It also includes consideration of faith being invoked in politics by James Talarico in Texas and Adam Hamilton in Kansas. You can watch a video version of the conversation here.

Here are a few pieces related to the episode:

• Brian wrote at A Public Witness about Christian opposition to the Iran war.
• Hemant Mehta wrote at Friendly Atheist about why he's skeptical about the claims of military leaders invoking "Armageddon."
• Brian reported at A Public Witness on Doug Wilson preaching at the Pentagon.
• The bills on the "Ten Commandments" in public schools actually use a highly edited version.
• The bills on spiritual "chaplains" in public schools usually don't require individuals to actually be chaplains.
• Guthrie Graves-Fitzsimmons wrote for MS NOW about the faith appeals of James Talarico.
• First Things attacked the faith of James Talarico.
• Adam Hamilton is considering a Senate run.
• Matthew Taylor previously appeared on Dangerous Dogma to talk about his book The Violent Take it By Force.

Also, check out the most recent books by the three panelists:

• Brian Kaylor, The Bible According to Christian Nationalists: Exploiting Scripture for Political Power
• Angela Denker, Disciples of White Jesus: The Radicalization of American Boyhood
• Beau Underwood (with Brian Kaylor), Baptizing America How Mainline Protestants Helped Build Christian Nationalism

In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor looks at legislation across the country that purports to want the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms. But the version mandated by lawmakers cannot be found in any Bible. Kaylor unpacks where the edited language came from, why such legislation is an attack on religious liberty, and the legal battles over these laws.

This is the first episode of "A Trick of State," a special occasional series from Dangerous Dogma. In this series, Kaylor will investigate underexplored issues at the intersection of church and state that expose the false promises of Christian Nationalism. This episode includes interviews with Mark Chancey (a religious studies professor at Southern Methodist University and an expert in how the Bible is taught in public schools) and Rachel Laser (president and CEO of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, one of the groups suing to stop these laws).

To get a better sense of the gerrymandered version of the Ten Commandments mandated by lawmakers in Louisiana, Texas, and Arkansas, here are two images that show the edits. As the image below on the left shows. The parts in yellow are kept on the posters, the parts in red must be deleted, and the parts in green are added into the required text. Or, if you would rather think about it in terms of redacting like with the Epstein files, the image below on the right shows what the bills do to Exodus 20 by removing nearly two-thirds of the text.

Note: Don't forget to subscribe to our award-winning e-newsletter A Public Witness that helps you make sense of faith, culture, and politics. And order the new book by Brian Kaylor, The Bible According to Christian Nationalists: Exploiting Scripture for Political Power.