During a Christian Mass at the Pentagon on April 15, US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth read a prayer said by US pilots before search and rescue operations.
Hegseth said the prayer is based on a passage from the Book of Ezekiel, which is part of the Old Testament. However, social media users noticed that it resembled the words of the hero Samuel L. Jackson in the movie Pulp Fiction, as they wrote: Newsweek and The Guardian.
While serving at the Bigtagon complex, Hegseth said the prayer, known among the military as “CSAR 25:17,” was recited before CSAR (combat search and rescue) missions. It was also said during the rescue operation of the crew of an F-15 fighter jet that was shot down in Iran in early April.
Newsweek quoted Hegseth:
The path of the dashing pilot is surrounded on all sides by the chaos of selfish people and the tyranny of evil people. Blessed is he who, in the name of company and duty, leads the lost through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother’s keeper and seeker of lost children. And I will bring upon you great vengeance and intense wrath from those who attempt to seize and destroy my brother. And you’ll know my call sign is when I unleash my vengeance on you. Amen.
Here’s how Jules Winnfield, Samuel L. Jackson’s character in Quentin Tarantino’s Oscar-winning film, said a similar prayer before killing another character. Here is a translation according to the Russian classical version Voice acting:
The path of the righteous is difficult, because it is obstructed by selfish people and evil tyrants. Blessed is the shepherd who, in the name of mercy and kindness, leads the weak into the valley of darkness, for he is the one who truly cares for his neighbors. I will punish them with severe vengeance and punish all who conspired to poison my brothers. And you know that my name is the Lord when I take revenge on them.
This is how this phrase appears in the Old Testament (Ezekiel 25:17) in the council translation:
I will take severe revenge on them with severe punishments. They will know that I am the Lord when I take revenge on them.
As The Guardian notes, Hegseth’s statement and the line from the famous Tarantino film are similar to each other and greatly expand on the original script.
After Hegseth’s speech, one Reddit user wrote: “Pete Hegseth quotes fake Bible verses from Pulp Fiction during Pentagon speech.” Another user replied: “Bro, his speechwriter is definitely making fun of him. It’s like something out of a movie, you can recognize the rhythm of the speech right away.” A third added: “It’s satire, isn’t it?!”
Pete Hegseth is facing criticism for his performance as a Democrat intended Resolution on the dismissal of the head of the Pentagon, including due to the US war with Iran.