In response to Mike Johnson recently becoming the new House speaker, over 12,000 people have signed a Christian petition condemning the congressman as a "false prophet" among other Republican Party members.
Faithful America, an online Christian group that supports social justice causes, released their second-annual "False Prophets Don't Speak for Me" campaign featuring a list of top Christian-nationalist leaders in both church and politics along with a petition on Tuesday. The list, which in addition to Johnson, identifies former President Donald Trump, pastor Mark Burns, self-proclaimed prophet affiliated with the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) Julie Green, Fox News host Laura Ingraham, Ohio Representative Jim Jordan, conservative activist and radio talk show host Charlie Kirk, pastor Jackson Lahmeyer, Texas' Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, Archbishop Carlo Viganò, self-proclaimed prophet affiliated with NAR Lance Wallnau, and co-founder of Moms for Liberty and school board chair in Sarasota, Florida, Bridget Ziegler as "false prophets."
The petition aimed at Johnson and the others comes after Johnson's win as speaker. "It's hard to overstate the threat that anti-democracy, anti-freedom Christian nationalism poses to both democracy and the church today, especially now that Rep. Mike Johnson has become the most Christian-nationalist speaker in U.S. history," Faithful America's petition states.
As of Saturday afternoon, the petition has garnered 12,946 signatures as Faithful America aims to show that those listed as false prophets "will never speak for Jesus" for the Christian community.
Johnson was elected as speaker last month after weeks of infighting among House GOP members once Kevin McCarthy was ousted from the position, including Jordan's failed attempts to win the speakership after three rounds of voting.
Johnson, an evangelical Christian, who is also a close ally of Trump, has often been outspoken about putting his Christian faith at the center of his legislative career.
According to Faithful America, those listed in its petition are a threat to Christian nationalism, citing that they twist religion for power and hate while spreading disinformation.
"Christian nationalism is also a leader-driven movement. The threat is not from voters or people in the pews, but from the greedy liars and con men who spread disinformation, deploy the us-vs-them politics of fascism, and attach themselves to the fervor of faith in an attempt to build their own power and egos. These are the False Prophets that Jesus warned us about," the petition reads.
The Christian group has also previously warned that Johnson may be the "most dangerous Christian nationalist leader" in the U.S. government.
Johnson has faced criticism for his Christian views since becoming House speaker, including accusations of having strong ties to Christian nationalism, which holds that the U.S. is a solely Christian nation and that its laws and government should be tied to religious values.
Meanwhile, Johnson in an interview with Fox News earlier this week said the attacks directed at his faith "doesn't bother me at all."
"Look, there are entire industries that are built to take down public leaders, effective political leaders like me," he said. "I'm not surprised by that. I mean, it comes with the territory."
He continued: 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."
Newsweek has reached out to Faithful America and Johnson via email for further comment.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
fairness meter
To Rate This Article
About the writer
Natalie Venegas is a Weekend Reporter at Newsweek based in New York. Her focus is reporting on education, social justice ... Read more
