The United States Department of War has established an Office of Religious Affairs to strengthen the “moral, ethical and spiritual readiness” of military personnel.

The new office was announced in a memorandum issued Wednesday to senior Pentagon officials, combatant commanders and directors of defence agencies and Department of War field activities. The directive took effect immediately.

The memorandum also created the position of Director of the Office of Religious Affairs. The director will serve as a Principal Staff Assistant with direct access to the Secretary of War and will advise the Secretary and Deputy Secretary on religious affairs across the department.

According to the directive, the office will oversee resources and policies relating to religious ministry, chaplain services, facilities, logistics, training and education, as well as chapel youth programmes and faith-based home-schooling support for military families.

The department said the initiative would protect the religious rights of personnel and would not require anyone to participate in religious activities. “Nothing in this memorandum shall be construed to compel religious participation or to diminish the free exercise rights of any Service member, civilian employee, or family member of any faith or no faith,” it said.

The office will also support research and technology aimed at assessing spiritual fitness, readiness and resilience, alongside faith-based initiatives focused on suicide reduction and the resilience of service members.

The director will have authority to coordinate and, where necessary, issue policies on religious affairs on behalf of the Secretary of War. The office will also represent the department in religious-affairs engagements with Congress, other government agencies and civilian religious organisations.

The memorandum places the Armed Forces Chaplains Board and its executive director under the authority of the new Director of Religious Affairs. It also directs military departments to identify unfunded or underfunded religious-affairs needs, including chaplain services, facilities, programmes, training and spiritual-resilience initiatives.

Officials have been given deadlines to establish the office’s organisational structure and funding framework. A baseline budget and fiscal 2027 funding plan are to be developed within 60 days, while the formal organisational structure and initial staffing requirements are expected within 90 days.