The Pentagon may have intended only a routine administrative update, but it has instead sparked a political and religious controversy that is now drawing national attention.
At the center of the backlash is Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), a close ally of President Donald Trump, who sharply criticized a recent Defense Department policy change that removed The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from a military classification grouping Christian faith traditions.
Lee responded forcefully in a video posted to social media, arguing that the federal government should not be involved in defining or categorizing religious doctrine.
He said, “I find this offensive, not just because that happens to be my faith, not just because it 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 also called directly on Defense Department leadership to reverse the decision, urging immediate action from Pentagon officials and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. “I’m imploring people at the Pentagon to reconsider this—not just reconsider it but undo it,” he said. “Secretary Hegseth, tear down that wall. This is not cool. Get rid of it. Get rid of it now.”
The controversy stems from a broader Pentagon effort to streamline how religious affiliation data is recorded across the armed forces. Under the revised system, hundreds of previous classification codes were consolidated into a smaller set of broader categories.
Defense officials say the change is purely administrative and designed to help chaplains more efficiently provide religious support services to service members. A Pentagon spokesperson, Sean Parnell, emphasized that the update was not intended to judge or rank any faith tradition.
“The goal is to ensure our chaplains and religious support teams can better meet the needs of service members,” he said, adding that the categories are not meant to make any statement about the validity of any religious belief.
Still, critics argue that even administrative classifications can carry unintended consequences when they intersect with religious identity. The decision has been especially controversial in Utah, where the LDS Church has deep cultural roots and where many service members identify as Latter-day Saints.
Fellow Utah Republican Sen. John Curtis also condemned the change, calling it “unacceptable” and urging the Pentagon to revisit the policy.
By Monday, the White House was listening:
I just got off the phone with President Trump
We discussed the Pentagon’s “Christian list”
I won’t speak for him, but I’m thrilled about where this is heading
We’re most fortunate that President Trump (1) loves Latter-day Saints, and (2) is our commander in chief
Stay tuned https://t.co/ofxMJJHly9
— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) June 8, 2026
On Monday, Lee expressed his gratitude that the “error” was fixed.
I agree with this statement, and am grateful to @SecWar Hegseth for correcting the error:
“The Pentagon’s job is not to adjudicate theological debates, but instead to ensure sincerely-held faith is respected and encouraged in our ranks.” https://t.co/1U4vZNBMj2
— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) June 8, 2026
“Last week, a proposed list of simplified faith codes was released to the media,” the War Department’s rapid response X account posted. “The Pentagon list included redundant and unnecessary labeling, and the mistake has been fixed. The goal of this effort is to simplify a previously out-of-control “belief” coding system that had ballooned to over 200 codes. In order to clarify the work of chaplains, and simplify the work of commanders, the Pentagon has consolidated and simplified the list to roughly thirty codes — using the previously used labels for faiths. The Pentagon’s job is not to adjudicate theological debates, but instead to ensure sincerely-held faith is respected and encouraged in our ranks.”
“I agree with this statement, and am grateful to Hegseth for correcting the error,” Lee reposted.
