The Pentagon's revision of its list of religious affiliations has reignited a nearly 200-year-old debate over whether The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints should be classified as a Christian denomination. Utah Republican Senators Mike Lee and John Curtis, both Latter-day Saints, challenged the Defense Department's initial decision to exclude their faith from its list of Christian religions, part of an effort to pare down a roster of more than 200 religious affiliations available to troops.
The Pentagon's original revision removed categories including atheists, Unitarian Universalists, pagans and Wiccans. After pushback from LDS lawmakers, the department removed the Christian label from 20 other traditions, including Catholic, Lutheran and Pentecostal groups, while still declining to classify Latter-day Saints as Christian. The Defense Department stated the new rubric is intended to help chaplains structure resources efficiently, not to make claims about any faith's legitimacy.
What the Right Is Saying
Senator John Curtis posted on X that Latter-day Saints are "unequivocally Christian" and called it "unacceptable for the government to characterize a faith in a way that contradicts how the religion identifies itself." Senator Mike Lee stated that his church membership is "inextricably intertwined with my Christianity, as it is for 17 million other Latter-day Saints."
Conservative religious leaders have largely supported the Pentagon's approach of avoiding any classification label rather than adjudicating theological disputes. Evangelical commentators have noted that while many traditional Christians hold distinct views on LDS doctrine, the government should not be in the position of officially defining Christian identity for military administrative purposes.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints maintains on its website that it is a "Christian Church, but is neither Catholic nor Protestant," describing itself as "a restoration of the Church of Jesus Christ as originally established by the Savior in the New Testament."
What the Left Is Saying
Progressive advocates for religious freedom have raised concerns about government classification of religion more broadly. Some argue that any official categorization by the military risks privileging certain faiths over others and could undermine the principle of church-state separation. Critics note that defining what constitutes Christianity is traditionally a theological question handled by religious institutions, not federal agencies.
Civil liberties organizations have pointed to the broader implications for religious minorities in the military. The removal of categories like atheists and Wiccans from the list drew criticism from those who argue service members should be able to identify with their actual beliefs. Defense Department officials maintain that the streamlined list is purely administrative and does not reflect policy judgments about any faith's validity.
What the Numbers Show
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has nearly 18 million members worldwide, with the highest concentration in Utah. The church has a long history of military service and emphasizes patriotism and chaplaincy support within the armed forces.
The Pentagon's original list contained more than 200 religious affiliations before being significantly trimmed. The department removed categories for atheists, Unitarians, pagans and Wiccans entirely while preserving but unlabeled designations for Catholic, Lutheran, Pentecostal and Latter-day Saints traditions.
Matthew Bowman, chair of Mormon studies at Claremont Graduate University in Southern California, said the core theological difference lies in how major Christian denominations and Latter-day Saints define the nature of God and view the Trinity. Most Christian faiths believe God is spirit while Latter-day Saints believe God was a human being who achieved Godhood.
The Vatican stated in 2012 that even though LDS baptismal rites reference the Trinity, the church's beliefs about the identities of the three are so different from Catholic doctrine that it cannot be regarded as a Christian baptism under Catholic standards.
The Bottom Line
This controversy highlights ongoing tensions between government neutrality and religious self-identification. While the Pentagon has framed its changes as purely administrative, both LDS leaders and evangelical Christians have strong views on how their faiths should be classified.
The debate extends beyond bureaucratic categorization to broader questions about evangelical-Mormon political alliances. Scholars note that former President Donald Trump's rise created friction between traditionally allied evangelical and Latter-day Saint voters, particularly among younger Mormons who view evangelicals as increasingly hostile.
Philip McLemore, who served as a Latter-day Saint chaplain in the Air Force from 1984 to 2005, said he faced discrimination during his service. "That mostly came from other Christian chaplains and supervisors who believed Mormon chaplains were not Christian," he said. He noted that some Christian chaplains worried LDS chaplains might use military positions for conversion efforts.
What happens next: Watch for whether religious advocacy groups pursue formal challenges to the Pentagon's classification system, and whether Congress members raise questions about the administrative changes during defense authorization hearings.