A major investigation into a Tennessee church has shed light on a rapidly growing movement within American Christianity that interprets Iran , Israel , Islam and global politics through the lens of a literal war between God and Satan – and whose ideas have become increasingly influential within Donald Trump's political orbit .
The report by The Atlantic profiles The Well – a charismatic church in Maryville whose members believe they are engaged in "spiritual warfare" against demonic forces.
Congregants gather for "deliverance" sessions to cast demons out of people's bodies and identify what they call "territorial spirits" exercising authority over geographical areas.
The report suggests these ideas are no longer confined to obscure churches but form part of one of the fastest-growing strands of American Christianity.
The movement has also gained unprecedented access to the White House under Trump.
His longtime spiritual adviser, Paula White-Cain, is among its most prominent figures. The report also highlights Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, who has described the UnitedStates as being engaged in a "spiritual war".
It also notes that charismatic prophets encouraged Trump to interpret the confrontation with Iran as a cosmic battle against the biblical "Prince of Persia", a demonic figure drawn from the Book of Daniel.
According to the report, members of The Well have interpreted the recent conflict with Iran as evidence of Satan's activity, while some describe Muslims as seeking to "outnumber Americans and take over the country". The report also cites polling suggesting such beliefs extend well beyond churches like The Well.
Experts say charismatic "spiritual warfare" theology has added a supernatural dimension to traditional Christian Zionism, casting conflicts in the Middle East as manifestations of an ongoing struggle between God and Satan.
"The spiritual warfare Pentecostal/charismatic approach is more prevalent among Trump's circle than it has been in previous Republican administrations," Daniel G. Hummel, director of the Lumen Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a historian of American evangelicalism and Christian Zionism, told The New Arab .
"This is a significant development in the type of Christian leaders and networks that are at the helm of the Christian right coalition a change that has been gradual and can date to the last twenty or so years but really came into prominence in 2015 and after with the Trump campaign."
Hummel said the movement's worldview builds on a broader "clash of civilisations" narrative by investing geopolitical conflict with supernatural significance.
"A simplified 'clash of civilisations' perspective pits Judeo-Christian civilisation against Islamic civilisation as representing two incompatible civilisational worldviews," he said. "With their investment in spiritual warfare they see that confrontation as, well, spiritual as much as civilisational."
Within that worldview, demons are not merely metaphors for evil but active supernatural beings believed to influence individuals, communities and nations. The Well teaches that demons possess names, ranks and specialities, including 'Lilith', 'Belial' and 'Jezebel', each associated with particular forms of temptation or suffering. Church leaders also believe demons establish "strongholds" over geographical areas.
According to the report, the congregation created a "war room", divided the county into prayer sectors and carried out "spiritual mapping" to identify centres of demonic influence.
It concluded the area's principal satanic stronghold was a local library and café hosting drag performances, displaying Pride flags and holding Democratic Party meetings. Members organised prayer walks around the building and appealed to local authorities.
The church's founders, Mike and Andrea Brewer, also describe travelling overseas to confront demons they believed were attached to other religions, while Andrea compiles what she calls "spiritual intelligence" by recording dreams, alleged possessions and perceived divine signs to build a map of demonic influence.
Hummel said these ideas have long coexisted with more traditional forms of Christian Zionism. "The spiritual warfare approach to Christian Zionism has been around at least since the 1980s," he said.
"It often intersects with the less charismatic and more dispensationalist approach, but the two have been commingling for decades," he added, arguing that portraying Iran as a demonic power "has that potential" to make military confrontation appear religiously sanctioned.
"There is a long history of humans demonising – both figuratively and literally – enemies to rally people to war. This would be one example of that."
He cautioned, however, against attributing US policy towards the Middle East solely to theology.
"Don't ignore theology but also don't attribute all actions by Christian leaders to theology, as if they don't also have other motives – profane and sacred – driving them as well," Hummel said.
"Many different groups of conservatives and Americans have hostile views of the current Iranian regime and the Pentecostal hostility is not purely driven by spiritual warfare theology."