UCC joins denominations, religious leaders in joint letter raising concern over revisions to the Religious Affiliation Codes list

The United Church of Christ, along with more than a dozen other denominations and their representatives, joined together in writing a letter to express concern about the recent revisions to the Religious Affiliations Code List, administered under the authority of the Secretary of Defense. 

A list that was shared via a memorandum on May 20 reduced the total number of faiths from 217 to 31. The reform marks the first time in nearly a decade that the lists were revised. The changes were spearheaded by Secretary Pete Hegseth, who said it was to “streamline the DoW collection of religious preferences collection for service members to enhance the delivery of targeted religious support from the Chaplaincy.”

The letter of concern, which has the backing of the Rev. Stephen Boyd, the UCC’s Minister for Government Chaplains, and the official Ecclesiastical Endorser of the denomination, said the revised list ‘undermines the commitment [for every Service Member to serve with dignity, and have their religious identity respected] by removing or obscuring the identities of longstanding religious communities whose members serve in uniform.’ The letter further states that such actions can cause service members to view [the change] as erasure.

“Such changes can obscure meaningful differences in belief, practice, clergy access, dietary needs, holy days, burial customs, conscientious objection claims, grooming or apparel requirements, and other matters of religious exercise,” according to the letter. 

It’s important to note that the actions of the Department of Defense do not impact the UCC’s authority to endorse chaplains, nor does it impact the standing or service of current chaplains. For more information about this, email Rev. Boyd at boyds@ucc.org. 

The full letter can be read below. 

---

Content on ucc.org is copyrighted by the National Setting of the United Church of Christ and may be only shared according to the guidelines outlined here.