Pentagon revises religious affiliation list after backlash over LDS classification

The Pentagon revised its streamlined list of recognized religious affiliations for service members on June 8, removing broad “Christian” labels after sharp criticism from Latter-day Saint lawmakers who objected to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) being placed outside that category. 

The revision came days after the Department of War (DoW) announced on June 5 that it had reduced religious affiliation codes in its systems from more than 200 to 31. War Secretary Pete Hegseth said in December 2025 that he planned to reform the Pentagon’s “overly complex” faith and belief coding system. 

Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a social media post that the shorter list was meant to “allow chaplains to quickly look at the religious composition of their units and determine how they structure resources to best provide for warfighters of all faith groups.” 

The June 5 version grouped more than 20 denominations under “Christian” headings while listing the LDS Church separately. It also eliminated several prior affiliation codes, including those for Unitarian Universalists, pagans, and Wiccans. 

Utah Republican Sens. Mike Lee and John Curtis criticized the move over the weekend, arguing that members of the LDS Church are Christians and should not be singled out from other Christian groups. 

“I think it’s very unfortunate that the Pentagon has chosen to identify basically every faith group in America that professes faith in Jesus Christ as Christian with one exception: that is those belonging to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,” Lee said in a video posted online June 7. “I find this offensive, not just because that happens to be my faith and not just because it happens to be the faith of tens of thousands of U.S. military personnel, but it’s also just repugnant to any sense of decency.”

The Pentagon’s new version of the list removes the umbrella “Christian” labels that had appeared before some denominations entirely. Denominations are now listed individually — including Baptists, Catholics, Christians (non-denominational), Lutherans, Methodists, Pentecostals, and Latter-day Saints — alongside other faiths such as Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Sikhism, and Baha’i, plus a category for agnostics. 

“The Pentagon’s job is not to adjudicate theological debates, but instead to ensure sincerely-held faith is respected and encouraged in our ranks,” the Pentagon’s rapid response account said in a post on X.

Lee welcomed the revision in an X post, saying he was grateful to War Secretary Pete Hegseth for “correcting the error.” He said in a separate post hours earlier that he had spoken with President Donald Trump by phone about the Pentagon’s list.