Pentagon Streamlines Recognized Faith Codes for Service Members from Over 200 to 31

The Department of Defense reduced the number of recognized religions, faiths and belief systems for service members from more than 200 to 31. The change was announced in a memo signed by Anthony Tata, under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness, and shared with USA TODAY by the Military Religious Freedom Foundation.

The memo states that Pete Hegseth directed the reduction to streamline the collection of religious preferences and improve delivery of targeted support from military chaplains.

The list of remaining codes includes Agnostic (AN), Baha'i faith (BH), Buddhism (BU), multiple Christian denominations, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (CJ), Hindu (HI), Islam (Muslim) (IS), Judaism (Jewish) (JU), No Religion (NR), Other Religions (OR) and Sikh (SI).

Faiths removed from the list include Atheists, Deists, Druids, Humanists, Magick, New Age churches, Pagan, Shaman, Spiritualists and Unitarian Universalists. The reduction will limit the number of religious affiliation codes used to connect service members with faith resources.

Mikey Weinstein, founder and president of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, called the change a direct hit on the Constitution's First Amendment. “Reducing the number of religious faiths from hundreds down to 31 is another absolute, clear, filthy and disgusting, unconstitutional, immoral and unethical attempt to force only the approved solution, getting closer and closer to Christian nationalism,” Weinstein said in a press release.

Weinstein added that his organization was “very seriously considering” filing a federal class action suit on behalf of service members and civilians affected by the policy.

The Department of Defense did not respond to USA TODAY's request for comment. The move reverses an expansion endorsed in 2017 by the Armed Forces Chaplains Board. That earlier change aimed to standardize identification of religious preferences, provide more accurate demographic data and improve planning for religious support across the services.

The reduction follows other changes directed by Hegseth. In March he announced that chaplains would no longer wear rank insignia and would instead display religious insignia while retaining officer rank. Hegseth said the change would allow chaplains to “be seen among the highest ranks because of their divine calling” and stated that the Pentagon was “not even close to being done” in restoring the position of chaplain.

In April, Hegseth removed Maj. Gen. William Green Jr. as the Army’s chief of chaplains. Green had served as an Army chaplain since 1994 after endorsement by the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.