Military Chaplains Act of 2025
The Military Chaplains Act of 2025 would codify, across the Army, Navy/Marine Corps/Coast Guard, and Air Force/Space Force (with related references to the Space Force and Marine Corps in the Navy section), the purpose, role, duties, and professional qualification requirements for military chaplains. It creates formal duties for chaplains and the Chaplain Corps, designates Chief of Chaplains as an adviser to the service secretary, and requires chaplains to advise on religious accommodation, spiritual readiness, and the impact of religion on operations. The bill also strengthens protections for chaplains to act in accordance with their sincerely held beliefs and their endorsing organizations, bans coercion or retaliation for refusals to perform actions contrary to those beliefs, and requires enforcement mechanisms under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). It includes definitions of key terms and directs the Secretary of Defense to issue implementing regulations, with some conforming amendments to existing law. In short, the bill aims to clearly define chaplains’ duties and qualifications, shield their religious exercise rights, standardize their advisory role across all branches, and provide enforcement measures if those protections are violated.
Key Points
- 1Establishes formal duties, responsibilities, and qualification standards for chaplains in the Army, Navy/Marine Corps/Coast Guard, and Air Force/Space Force, including roles as religious accommodation advisers and providers of spiritual readiness and morale support.
- 2Prohibits coercion or retaliation against chaplains for acting in accordance with their sincerely held beliefs or for following the tenets of their endorsing religious organizations; guarantees chaplains’ right to conduct worship, counseling, sermons, and other ministry without censorship or fear of retribution; protects confidential communications.
- 3Creates an advisory role for the Chief of Chaplains in each service (and expands the Navy, Air Force, and their associated commands) to guide commanders on free exercise of religion, spiritual readiness, religion’s impact on operations, and related policies; requires oversight by the Office of the Chief of Chaplains.
- 4Provides process and oversight for addressing religious accommodation requests, crisis and suicide prevention initiatives, and education/training related to religious practices; includes mechanisms to connect individuals with appropriate chaplains or resources when direct ministering is not possible.
- 5Enacts enforcement and regulatory steps: violations of chaplain protections would be offenses under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (Article 134), with a President’s obligation within one year to prescribe regulations and update the Manual for Court-Martial; Secretary of Defense to issue implementing regulations; and certain conforming amendments to existing law (including NDAA 2013 provisions and Air Force functions).