Tata Cuts Military Chaplain Faith Codes to 31
Anthony Tata signed a May 20, 2026 memorandum that cut the military chaplain faith code list from 211 recognized religious faiths and belief systems to 31. The change, ordered at Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's direction, rewrites how the military records service members' religious preferences.
The memorandum says the revised list is meant to "streamline the DoW collection of religious preferences collection for service members to enhance the delivery of targeted religious support from the Chaplaincy". It also says, "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".
May 20 Memorandum
The revision removed about 180 categories. The memorandum says the previously instituted faith and belief codes are to be revised within 60 days. Military.com said the Defense Department change comes "for the first time in almost 10 years" and reduces the number of recognized religious faiths and belief systems by approximately 180.
The list now includes Agnostics, Buddhists, Hindus, Islam, Judaism, Sikh, and a range of Christian-based groups, including Baptists, Catholics, Lutherans, and Methodists. The reduction leaves out Atheists, Asatru, Deists, Druids, Eckankar, Heathens, Humanists, Magick, New Age churches, Pagan, Rosicrucianism, Shaman, Spiritualists, Troth, Unitarian Universalists, and various Wiccans.
2017 Faith Expansion
The new memorandum reverses part of a 2017 expansion. On March 27, 2017, a memo had increased the total number of faiths to 211, and the Armed Forces Chaplains Board had endorsed that expansion to standardize and better identify religious preferences recognized by the military services.
That earlier change was also described as improving demographic tracking, planning for religious support, and assessing chaplain corps capabilities and requirements. The new reduction moves the system in the opposite direction, narrowing the categories available to identify service members and to plan appropriated religious coverage.
Chaplaincy Coverage
Military.com said it asked the Department of Defense what led to the change, whether any concern was expressed by service members or chaplains, and whether members' lack of individual support could hurt morale within the ranks. The memorandum itself gives the stated purpose: tighter collection of religious preferences and targeted support from the Chaplaincy.
For service members whose faiths remain on the list, the change preserves recognition in the military's records system. For those whose categories disappeared, the practical effect is a narrower official framework for how religious preference is documented and how chaplains organize support inside the force.
