The Pentagon announced a reduction in the list of tracked faiths followed by American military personnel from more than 200 to 31. In the new codification, followers of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons), who were previously listed in the “Christians” section, were not represented. This drew sharp criticism from members of the Mormon community, including in Congress.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell explained the decision by streamlining the work of chaplains, noting that this step was “long overdue.” Separately, he emphasized that the measure is not intended to “make any statement about the legitimacy of any faith or religious belief,” and the list presented is not a list of “officially approved” religions.
“[Сокращение религиозных кодов] “is designed to enable chaplains to quickly assess the religious composition of their units and determine how to structure resources to best meet the needs of warriors of all faiths,” Parnell said.
He added that chaplains play a key role in ensuring the right of American troops to freely practice any religion or none. The Pentagon spokesman also referred to the First Amendment to the US Constitution, which guarantees freedom of religion.
According to World Population Review, as of 2026, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has more than 16 million members, centered in Salt Lake City, Utah. There are 5,229 communities in this state, Mormons make up about 68.55% of the total population of Utah, the resource clarifies.
Republicans Mike Lee and John Curtis, who represent Utah in the Senate and are practicing Mormons, criticized the Pentagon's decision. Curtis called Mormons “among the most patriotic” and focused “on service to country.”
“Can anyone explain why The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was not included in the list of Christian churches? Are we not Christians? Nonsense,” Lee wrote in turn on X (formerly Twitter).
Republican Mike Kennedy, a member of the House of Representatives from Utah, also criticized the innovation. And Mormon Democratic Caucus Chairman Eric Biggart told ABC4 that he was not surprised by the changes and that his understanding of Christianity differs from that of the Trump administration.
“For us on the left, it’s like, yeah, of course the Trump administration doesn’t believe in our version of Christianity,” he said. “This has been clear to us for 10 years.”
At the same time, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints itself, ABC4, refused to comment on the Pentagon’s innovations.
Unlike most Christian denominations, Mormons consider God the Father, God the Son, and the Holy Spirit to be three separate persons, rather than a single Trinity. In addition to the Bible, they recognize the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price as sacred texts. Among the most famous features of the doctrine are the prohibition of alcohol, tobacco, coffee and tea, marriages “for eternity” and baptisms for the dead.
New codification of religious affiliation in the US Army
@SeanParnellASW/X
Military personnel whose religions are not included in the list are encouraged to register under designations such as “agnostic,” “no religion,” or “other religions,” Newsweek notes. Among the categories that were excluded from the codification are atheism, humanism, Wiccanism, paganism and Unitarian Universalism, the publication adds.
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said the previous presidential administration, in its pursuit of political correctness, “blurred” the duties of chaplains “to the level of psychotherapists” and general assistance.
“Chaplains need to be returned to their primary mission – meeting the spiritual needs of American soldiers,” the head of the military department noted, “the previous system consisted of more than 200 codes. It was impractical and awkward to use, and many of the codes were never used at all.”
By the way, Hegseth himself belongs to the Community of Reformed Evangelical Churches, which was included in the updated list. There are also Protestants there—US President Donald Trump was raised in the Presbyterian tradition.
