Kelly Johnson is married to Mike Johnson, the Speaker of the House. She previously worked as a Christian therapist, offering a fringe type of therapy based on Hippocrates’ views instead of modern science.
Meet the couple
Mike and Kelly Johnson are devout Christians who are public about their “biblical worldview.” They first entered the public eye in the 1990s, when they became outspoken proponents of “covenant marriages,” an agreement offered in some states that makes divorce more difficult to obtain.
A history of extremism
Mike Johnson, at least, has a long and public history of opposing the rights of women and people in the LGBTQ+ community. Since being elected speaker, news outlets and critics have dug up various columns in which he railed against LGBTQ+ Americans.
Temperament therapy
As part of her Christian counseling service, Kelly Johnson promoted herself as a specialist in temperament therapy. This controversial technique was created by the National Christian Counselor’s Association, a group formed in the 1980s by Christian couple Richard and Phyllis Arno.
Links to hate
The Arnos listed Tim LaHaye as an inspiration for temperament counseling, citing him in one of their books. LaHaye was an infamous figure in the evangelical far-right who wrote and published a book entirely devoted to questioning those in the LGBTQ+ community.
Dubious logic
Despite baselessly questioning the innateness of sexual preference, proponents of temperament therapy use the term “temperament” based on an argument claiming that temperaments are “inborn” where personality is not.
Shaky foundations
According to temperament therapy, each person has one of five possible temperaments: Melancholy, Sanguine, Phlegmatic, Supine, or Choleric. The idea comes from Hippocrates, an ancient Greek philosopher who believed that there were four temperaments.
Not particularly scientific
While Hippocrates’s views were used by scientists for thousands of years, they have been widely proved incorrect in the modern era. However, that hasn’t stopped Kelly Johnson from incorporating them into her Christian counseling services.
A range of possibilities
Christian counseling can vary widely. Some merely add elements of Biblical teaching to an otherwise scientific approach. Others, however, reject modern scientific methods, instead focusing on the supposed healing power of faith, God, and scripture.
Where Kelly Johnson falls
Where exactly Johnson falls is unclear, though her outspoken devoutness perhaps implies she would tend to the more faith-focused side of Christian counseling. Her services were associated with the church in Louisiana that she and her husband attend.
More clues
Kelly and Mike Johnson’s church is called Cypress Baptist Church. While it claims to welcome everyone, it is opposed to premarital sex and “recognizes only the biblical definition of marriage.”
Yet more clues
The National Christian Counselor’s Association is open about its focus on faith over the ethics underpinning the state-licensed therapy system. As the organization writes in a catalog of services, “The state licensed professional counselor in certain states is forbidden to pray, read or refer to the Holy Scriptures, counsel against things such as homosexuality, abortion, etc.”
The clues keep on coming
Kelly Johnson is listed as an advisor for a notorious anti-abortion organization called Louisiana Right for Life.
Scrub the evidence
Soon after her husband became House speaker, the website promoting Kelly Johnson’s practice disappeared. It’s unclear whether she will continue practicing.
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