What Is the Military Religious Freedom Foundation? Here's What We Know

People want to know what the Military Religious Freedom Foundation is after at least 110 service members across every military branch filed complaints about their commanders’ religious comments on the Iran war. According to journalist Jonathan Larsen, one combat-unit commander told troops that Donald Trump was “anointed by Jesus to light the signal fire in Iran to cause Armageddon and mark his return to Earth."

Over a three-day period beginning on Feb. 28, 2026, more than 110 complaints were logged by the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF).

The complaints come after the U.S. and Israel bombed Iran on Feb. 28, 2026, in a joint attack. President Donald Trump claimed the military was targeting governmental and military sites. So, what is the Military Religious Freedom Foundation?

The Military Religious Freedom Foundation is an organization created to protect all service members in the U.S. military and their religious freedom.

"The Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) is dedicated to ensuring that all members of the United States Armed Forces fully receive the Constitutional guarantee of religious freedom to which they and all Americans are entitled by virtue of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment," reads a description on the MRFF website.

"No religion or religious philosophy may be advanced by the United States Armed Forces over any other religion or religious philosophy," state the rules of the MRFF. "No member of the United States Armed Forces may be compelled in any way to conform to a particular religion or religious philosophy. No member of the United States Armed Forces may be compelled in any way to witness or engage in any religious exercise."

Service members' complaints directly contradict the MRFF's guarantee of religious freedom.

"It is the responsibility of the military hierarchy to ensure that the free exercise of religious freedoms of all enlisted personnel are respected and served," says the MRFF. "All military personnel have the right to employ appropriate judicial means to protect their religious rights."

Jonathan Larsen was the first to report on the service member complaints, and he noted that the MRFF told him the complaints came from more than 40 different units across at least 30 military installations. The MRFF is reportedly keeping the service members' complainants anonymous so that the Department of Defense doesn't retaliate against them, and the Pentagon did not respond to comment requests.

According to the report, one service member identified themselves as a non-commissioned officer in Iran who was a Christian, but they notified the MRFF on behalf of 15 troops. The troops included one Muslim person, one Jewish person, and 11 Christians.

The non-commissioned officer wrote that the troops' commander “urged us to tell our troops that this was ‘all part of God’s divine plan’ and he specifically referenced numerous citations out of the Book of Revelation referring to Armageddon and the imminent return of Jesus Christ."

The report also noted that United States Secretary of War Defense Pete Hegseth is an evangelical Christian who broadcasts monthly prayer meetings throughout the Pentagon, and he also attends a bible study at the White House every week.