Pentagon cuts recognized military religions from over 200 to just 31
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The War Department officially removed 180 religions from its list of recognized religions, based on a change previously announced by Secretary of War Pete Hegseth.
The U.S. Military Chaplain Corps previously recognized more than 200 codes of faith to which soldiers could claim to adhere. That number now stands at just 31, according to Military.com, according to a memo from Undersecretary of Defense Anthony Tata released Thursday.
Tata’s memo states that the change “will make it easier for DoW to collect religious preferences for service members to enhance the provision of targeted religious support from the Chaplaincy.”
“The new list will provide chaplains with clear and readily available information that will enable them to better anticipate service members’ religious support needs and provide religious support activities that are consistent with service members’ personal beliefs and practices,” he added.
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U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth greets graduating cadets during the U.S. Military Academy graduation ceremony at U.S. Military Academy Michie Stadium. (Adam Gray/Getty Images)
The new list includes a wide range of Christian-based groups, including Agnostics, Buddhists, Hindus, Islam (Muslims), Judaism, Sikhs and Baptists, Catholics, Lutherans and Methodists.
Hegseth announced his intention to shorten his list of beliefs earlier this year.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth listens to US Central Command Commander Admiral Brad Cooper speak at a press conference at the Pentagon. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
“The previous system amounted to over 200 rules of faith. It was clunky and unusable, and many codes were never used,” Hegseth said in March. He noted that the vast majority of military members follow only six articles of faith.
In addition to this change, the Pentagon also instructed serving clergy to replace their rank insignia with their religious insignia.
President Donald Trump speaks at a Cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, DC (Samuel Corum/Sipa/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“A pastor is a priest first and foremost, and a civil servant second. This change is a visual representation of that truth,” Hegseth said in a statement in March. he said.
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“Especially specific to the role of a priest, these individuals are first and foremost called and appointed by God. And although they will retain the rank of officer among those they serve, their rank will not be visible,” he added.
