House Speaker Mike Johnson's home church receives suspicious package; FBI investigates

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Tuesday, February 20, 2024

Newly elected U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson is sworn in at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on October 25, 2023. Republicans on October 24 made their fourth pick in just two weeks to replace the ousted speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, underlining the chaos engulfing the fragmented party after three previous nominees failed to win the gavel. (Photo by TOM BRENNER / AFP) (Photo by TOM BRENNER/AFP via Getty Images) | TOM BRENNER/AFP via Getty Images

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is investigating the recent discovery of a letter containing white powder that was sent to U.S. Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson's home church in Louisiana.

The package was sent to Cypress Baptist Church of Benton, a suburb of Shreveport-Bossier, located in Louisiana's 4th Congressional District, which the Republican lawmaker represents.

Louisiana State Police handed the investigation over to the FBI on Monday, according to The Shreveport Times. After testing, the powder was determined to be harmless. The FBI says that even sending a "hoax letter" is a "serious crime."

"Speaker Johnson was made aware of a suspicious package sent to his home church in Louisiana," Johnson's spokesperson Griffin Neal said in a statement.

"Speaker Johnson and the Johnson family thank U.S. Capitol Police, the FBI, the Louisiana State Police and the Bossier Parish Sheriff's Office for taking swift action and handling the situation professionally. As the investigation is ongoing, we will refer all further questions to law enforcement handling this matter."

Cypress Baptist was also listed as the business address for Onward Christian Counseling Services, according to The Times. OCCS is owned by Johnson's wife, Kelly Johnson, and was the focus of headlines last October when The Huffington Post published a report noting that the Christian counseling group compared homosexuality to bestiality and incest.

The OCCS' website stated that marriage was exclusively a relationship between "one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture" and that "any form of sexual immorality, such as adultery, fornication, homosexuality, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, pornography or any attempt to change one's sex, or disagreement with one's biological sex, is sinful and offensive to God."

Since he became House Speaker last October, many progressive social commentators have taken issue with Johnson's conservative Christian beliefs on hot-topic social issues.

Johnson said in an interview on Fox News that he was unsurprised by the media attacks, noting that it "comes with the territory" and "doesn't bother me at all."

"I just wish they would get to know me. I'm not trying to establish Christianity as the national religion or something. That's not what this is about at all," said Johnson.

"If you truly believe in the Bible's commands and you seek to follow those, it is impossible to be a hateful person because the greatest command in the Bible is that you love God with everything you have and you love your neighbor as yourself."

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