Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s directive removes approximately 180 faith-and-belief categories from Defense Department records, prompting criticism from chaplains, veterans, and religious-liberty advocates.
The Department of Defense has officially reduced the number of recognized religious affiliation codes available to U.S. service members from 211 to 31, marking the most significant revision to the military’s faith classification system in nearly a decade and igniting a growing debate over religious freedom, chaplain support, and military readiness.
The change, outlined in a May 20, 2026, memorandum signed by Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Anthony Tata, follows guidance from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to streamline the department’s process for tracking religious preferences among military personnel.
According to the memorandum, the revised system is intended to improve the military chaplaincy's ability to anticipate and provide religious support to service members.
"The new list will provide chaplains with clear, readily available information that will better enable them to anticipate the religious support needs of service members and to provide religious support activities that align with service members’ personal faith and practices," Tata wrote.
