THE GOSPEL OF CARNAGE
Gene Scott / Jellybeaners
This article explores the connection between the Crusades, Christian nationalism, and modern political rhetoric. Through historical analysis and cultural critique, “The Gospel of Carnage” examines how religious language continues to shape war, power, and identity today.
From the Crusades to Modern Christian Nationalism
He has it tattooed on his right bicep. Deus vult. God wills it. The battle cry of the First Crusade, 1095 AD, when Pope Urban II stood at Clermont and promised heaven to anyone who picked up a sword and headed east. He didn’t get armies. He got rabble — peasants fleeing famine, debtors escaping creditors, criminals drawn by the promise of remission of sins and pointed toward Jerusalem. Both Urban and the Byzantine emperor who asked for help were horrified by what showed up. They wanted soldiers. They got a mob. That mob slaughtered Jewish communities across the Rhineland and massacred the populations of cities that surrendered. Deus vult. God willed it.
Nine hundred years later, the tattoo is still walking around.
Pete Hegseth titled his book American Crusade. He has opened Pentagon briefings with the Lord’s Prayer, on bended knee. He stood at a podium and called a rescued pilot a resurrection — a pilot reborn, a nation rejoicing, God is good. He called Iranian casualties death and destruction from above. He has hosted evangelical worship services inside the Pentagon. These are on the record.
Christian vs Follower of Jesus: A Critical Distinction
Here is what Pete Hegseth does not know, or knows and ignores: in some places, if you walk into a village and identify yourself as a Christian, you may not walk out. The word lands like a declaration of war — a thousand years of Crusades, colonial missions, and Western bombs packed into one syllable. Walk into that same village and say you are a follower of Jesus — Isa, the prophet Muslims revere — and they bring you inside. Feed you. Talk with you for hours. It is the distance between a sword and a conversation.
My father worked land he never owned. He knew the difference between a man who talks about God and a man who lives like he means it. So do I.
How Christian Nationalism Rewrites the Gospel
That distance is exactly what Christian nationalism erases. It takes the man who said love your enemies and makes him the mascot of empire. It takes the word Christian — already soaked in the memory of Crusades, inquisitions, and colonial missions that arrived with a Bible in one hand and a weapon in the other — and stitches it to a flag, a bomb, a tattoo. It mistakes the institution for the person. It mistakes power for righteousness.
Pope Leo XIV said it plain before Easter: God blesses no conflict. The Prince of Peace takes no side. Nobody answered.
Pete Hegseth answered anyway.
God wills it.
That’s the gospel of carnage.
Listen to “The Gospel of Carnage,” a sparse acoustic protest song exploring Christian nationalism and the legacy of the Crusades.
THE GOSPEL OF CARNAGE — LYRICS
[Verse 1]
Tattooed on his right arm
Latin — God wills it — plain
Shouted through the First Crusade
He liked the way it rang
Opens briefings with the Lord’s Prayer
on bended knee, he said
Death and destruction from above
Then bowed his head
[Chorus]
That’s the gospel of carnage
God wills it, he said
That’s the gospel of carnage
Deus vult on the dead
That’s the gospel of carnage
He’ll answer to the Lord
That’s the gospel of carnage
The cross becomes the sword
Ain’t mine
[Verse 2]
Brought the pilot home from Iran
Flashes lit the stage
Pilot reborn, they called it grace
God made a way
Heads bowed in the Pentagon
the preacher singing strong
Women shouldn’t vote, he said
He calls that nothing wrong
[Chorus]
That’s the gospel of carnage
God wills it, he said
That’s the gospel of carnage
Deus vult on the dead
That’s the gospel of carnage
He’ll answer to the Lord
That’s the gospel of carnage
The cross becomes the sword
Ain’t mine
[Bridge]
God blesses no conflict, the pope said it plain
The Prince of Peace won’t take a side
Before Easter morning
Nobody said a word
[Verse 3]
Pentagon press conference
no mercy, that’s the call
That’s not how Jesus lived
But that’s the protocol
[Chorus]
That’s the gospel of carnage
God wills it, he said
That’s the gospel of carnage
Deus vult on the dead
That’s the gospel of carnage
He’ll answer to the Lord
That’s the gospel of carnage
The cross becomes the sword
Ain’t mine
[Outro]
God wills it
God wills it
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Christian nationalism?
Christian nationalism is a political ideology that merges Christian identity with national identity, often framing political power as divinely sanctioned.
What does “Deus vult” mean?
“Deus vult” is Latin for “God wills it,” a phrase associated with the First Crusade and religious justification for war.
Why are the Crusades still relevant today?
The Crusades remain relevant because their symbolism and rhetoric are still used in modern political and religious discourse.
