On August 7, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth posted on X a clip of a CNN segment featuring Doug Wilson, the pastor who cofounded the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches (CREC), the extremist Christian nationalist sect that Hegseth joined in 2018. Hegseth added a catchphrase to the post that he learned from the church, “All of Christ for All of Life.”

In the video itself, Wilson and other CREC pastors affirm a theocratic and patriarchal vision of the world. Wilson tells CNN, “I’d like to see the nation be a Christian nation, and I’d like to see the world be a Christian world.” Another CREC pastor calls for the repeal of the 19th Amendment, which enshrines the right of women to vote, and a female parishioner supports the church’s teaching that wives must submit to their husbands.

I like submission in scene, but having married two self-described independent feminists, it’s really fucking frustrating when I’m expected to handle all the finances.

That sort of submission is really off-putting, so I don’t understand why other men seem to enjoy it.