The Pentagon has reworked a list of religious designations service members can register as, after Mormon Lawmakers in Congress, blew-up over a previous List that did not include the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) under “Christian.” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth (R) earlier 2026 Declared the Pentagon would Cut down the Faith Codes, the Recognized Faith Groups meant to provide more Accurate Demographic Data on Religious Beliefs held among Service Members, from 200 to just 31. He called the Former System “impractical and unusable” with many Codes never Used at all.
“An overwhelming majority of the military population used only six of the codes,” He said in 3/2026, adding that a more streamlined system will support chaplains in ministering to service members “in a way that aligns with that service member’s faith background and religious practice.” On Friday, the Pentagon announced service members could only register one of those 31 religions on their personnel records. But LDS was not listed under one of the 21 Christian-labeled denominations to choose from, upsetting several Utah lawmakers, including Sen. Mike Lee (R), who called the new designation “very unfortunate.”
“I find this offensive, not just because that happens to be my faith, and not just because that 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, any sense of our common heritage and our common belief that the government needs to not weigh in on doctrinal disputes between various religious denominations,” Lee said in a video posted on X on Sunday.
“I’m imploring people at the Pentagon to reconsider this—not just reconsider it, but undo it,” he added. “Secretary Hegseth, tear down that wall! This is not cool! Get rid of it, get rid of it now!” In a post to X on Friday, Pentagon press secretary Sean Parnell displayed the May 20 memo directing the changes, saying they were “long overdue.” He said the Pentagon isn’t making “any claims on the legitimacy of any faith or religious belief,” rather, it is trying to streamline data collection and religious support for soldiers, sailors and airmen.
“With this move, we are returning to the original intent of collecting this data — to allow our chaplains and religious support personnel to provide the best spiritual care to our warfighters,” Parnell wrote. “It is designed 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,” he added.
But that was not an acceptable explanation for Mormon House and Senate members, prompting a quick change. The new list now has just 30 faith codes, including LDS, but does not specify which religions fall under the Christian designation. “Last week, a proposed list of simplified faith codes was released to the media. The Pentagon list included redundant and unnecessary labeling, and the mistake has been fixed,” a Pentagon X account posted on Monday.
“The Pentagon’s job is not to adjudicate theological debates, but instead to ensure sincerely-held faith is respected and encouraged in our ranks,” according to the post. Mormons in Congress had previously bashed the first list, as LSD considers itself as a Christian denomination. “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a Christian church but is neither Catholic nor Protestant,” the official LSD website says under “frequently asked questions.”
“Rather, it is a restoration of the Church of Jesus Christ as originally established by the Savior in the New Testament of the Bible Rep. Mike Kennedy (R-Utah), said the Pentagon’s decision to list LSD apart from other Christian faiths “is wrong and needs to be corrected.” “[We] stand alongside many Christians of every tradition in following the teachings of Christ. We only ask to be accurately portrayed. I strongly urge the Department to correct the record,” he wrote on X on Sunday.
Sen. John Curtis (R-Utah) also stressed that LDS members “are among the most patriotic, service-oriented individuals in our country,” and “unequivocally Christian—just look at who is in the name of the Church.” “It is unacceptable for a government entity to characterize a faith in a manner that contradicts the religion’s own foundational tenets. I am working now to ensure a correction is made,” he wrote on X Saturday.
Under the Pentagon’s new list, service members can identify as various Christian religions including LDS, or Jewish, Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist, Hindu, Baha’i, or agnostic. Left off the list is atheist, Wiccan, pagan or humanist. Lee, who later on Sunday hinted that changes were forthcoming after he had spoken by phone with President Trump — with the two discussing the Pentagon’s “Christian list,” — on Monday applauded the changes.
“I agree with this statement, and am grateful to Hegseth for correcting the error,” Lee wrote on X. “The Pentagon’s job is not to adjudicate theological debates, but instead to ensure sincerely-held faith is respected and encouraged in our ranks.”
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