Religious Liberty Commission misconstrues religious freedom in the military

Wednesday was the fourth meeting of President Donald Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission. The meeting was held in Dallas, Texas, at a venue owned by conservative bankroller Harlan Crowe, a shady choice as my colleague Rachael Stryer explored earlier this week. The commission’s fourth meeting was supposed to be about faith and the military. 

Witnesses largely followed this administration’s pattern of cheering anything vilifying the LGBTQ+ community – and especially trans people – as a pro-Christian position. Much bandwidth also was given to religious objections to the Biden-era vaccine mandate for servicemembers during the COVID-19 pandemic (but, unsurprisingly, those same vaccines were attacked for non-religious reasons, with one witness calling them “unsafe and ineffective”). Though this meeting was supposed to be about the military, even repealing the Johnson Amendment was discussed. (It’s been a longtime Christian Nationalist goal to gut this federal law and allow houses of worship to endorse partisan political candidates, which AU is fighting in court.) 

Regardless, I want to focus on topics that Americans United raised in our written comments to the Religious Liberty Commission in advance of this meeting: recognizing and protecting religious minorities in the military, and the role of military chaplains. Notably, two non-Christian witnesses spoke at this meeting about the issues we highlighted in our comments. Perhaps unsurprisingly, neither of them were asked meaningful questions about their experience by the commissioners – probably because they didn’t contribute to the commission’s false narrative of Christian persecution that it has been pushing since its inception.

AU: Religious Liberty Commission should protect religious minorities in the military

As we explained in our written comments, members of the Armed Forces come from all religions and beliefs. A 2019 Department of Defense (DoD) study found that about one-third of active-duty personnel were non-Christian. Over time, the DoD has updated its policies to better recognize and respond to the needs of these service members – ensuring that those who put their lives on the line to defend our Constitution can exercise the rights enshrined in it.

The commission heard from Sukhbir Singh Toor, a retired captain in the U.S. Marine Corps and a practicing Sikh who got an accommodation to serve while wearing articles of faith – a beard, turban, and unshorn hair. In his testimony, Capt. Toor explained that his articles of faith never interfered with his service or his ability to lead his fellow Marines. He also explained that there are many Sikhs with the same accommodations successfully and honorably deployed around the world. But he warned that these accommodations are now in jeopardy. 

In a September speech, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth declared, “No more beardos. The era of rampant and ridiculous shaving profiles is done.” Capt. Toor, like AU, noted the grave reversal of progress on religious inclusion if grooming accommodations were no longer offered. Although Capt. Toor was asked by a commissioner why his turban and facial hair were important to his faith, no one followed up on Hegseth’s offensive comments or intentions to roll back the religious protections that allowed Capt. Toor to serve while adhering to his faith. In fact, the commissioners seemed rather uncomfortable when Capt. Toor asked directly that they recommend reversing Hegseth’s policies.

Role of military chaplains

Because the modern military is so religiously diverse, military chaplains must serve all, regardless of beliefs. 

Second Lt. Harish Rao, a Hindu soldier, spoke about his positive experience with the chaplain corps. He spoke about being discriminated for his Hindu beliefs during basic training and the “extraordinary support from the chaplain corps” early in his service. Lt. Rao testified that his commanding officer threatened him with “deportation” if he refused to remove his Tilak Chandlo (a symbol worn on the brow by some Hindus consisting of a U shape and a red dot). Because of caring chaplains who upheld their duty to serve everyone, Lt. Rao was able to complete basic training and has continued to serve his country. 

This is in contrast to some other witnesses who essentially testified that military chaplains should seek opportunities to bring service members to religion and implied that service members should be required to practice their faith. That is not what military chaplains should do. They must care for everyone. The military is not their mission field. But following Lt. Rao’s testimony, the commissioners were too busy asking another witness about the COVID vaccine to inquire about the awful discrimination he described.

Correcting the record at the Religious Liberty Commission

AU’s Public Policy department has been closely following the Religious Liberty Commission’s work this year. It started back in June, when AU CEO and President Rachel Laser and I attended its first meeting in person. (It was distasteful enough that AU has opted to attend subsequent meetings virtually.)

AU has submitted written comments before each and every meeting because we know how critical it is to provide a truthful record of the history, laws, and policies relating to religious freedom in the U.S. in the face of this administration’s revisionist takes on America’s past and present. (You can read AU’s previous written comments to the commission about public education here and here, and our comments about the history of religious freedom in America here.)

As we’ve seen again and again, the commission plays fast and loose with the truth and indulges in Christian Nationalism’s careful brand of playing the victim. By their telling, they are the most put upon people in America. It’s truly remarkable that a group so profoundly victimized by the American government now has the commission (AND a separate Anti-Christian Bias Task Force) doing the hard work of platforming just how hard it is to be a Christian Nationalist in the 21st century. 

Photo: 2nd Lt. Harish Rao discusses religious freedom in the miliary from a Hindu perspective during the Dec. 10, 2025, meeting of President Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission in Texas. (Credit: Screenshot of Department of Justice video)