Recently, several articles published by Robert Downen and Juan Salinas II from The Texas Tribune sought to do damage to a True Texas Project event being held next month. Massey Campos and Mike Sonneveldt, from Self-Evident Ministries, are slated to be keynote speakers at the event, both before and after the breakout sessions.

This event, a 15-year birthday celebration, will host speakers covering several major topics. The themes of the break-out sessions include titles such as "Multiculturalism and the War on White America", "Great Replacement Theory", "The Case for Christian Nationalism", "Is Christian Zionism Biblical?", and more.

Of course, these topics make great fodder for those in the progressive camp. The issues are spicy enough to bait activist journalists and leaders of progressive groups to use all of the usual rhetoric against such lectures. Words like racist, xenophobic, white supremacist, white-identitarians, Christian Nationalists, and so forth become common focal points when trying to build a generalized identity of the event and its speakers. People believe that the labels become powerful artillery in a war of ideas.

And that is precisely the intention of these articles and the subsequent discussion taking place. The true meaning of the topics does not matter. It's all about association. Whether the topics and speakers themselves truly hold the motives they're being accused of doesn't matter...it's all about association.

If an association or tangential link can be used to drag down public perspective, then activists will stop at nothing to play up the connection. In fact, it becomes a primary tool and reeks of a thorough internalizing of Saul Alinsky's Rules for Radicals. The more an association with an extremist person or thought can be made, the easier it is to isolate, embarrass, and destroy a group or organization.

An ulterior motive shows itself best in covering up the inconvenient facts or nuances of an issue. While these speakers were certainly called and asked whether they wanted to associate with such an event, we find little evidence of honest work being done to understand the foundational beliefs of the speakers. Conclusions were made and guilty associations were played up.

In fact, even Richard Spencer's name was conveniently used to draw gross connections to Paul Gottfried. Mind you, Gottfried has publicly denounced antisemitism and the white supremacist movement. He is Jewish, attended a Jewish university, and his family escaped Hitler's government and the genocide of the holocaust.

In the mission of the activist posing as an investigator, the inconvenient facts should never get in the way of the emotional goal. In other words, you can't create fear, animosity, division, and suppression unless the emotions of the ignorant and uninformed are stirred into passion and vitriol. Use Spencer's name, attach emotions to Gottfried.

 

Self-Evident's Position

We will proudly be attending True Texas Project's 15-year birthday celebration. In a recent phone call, we were asked by Mr. Downen whether we wanted to step down from this event and if we had a comment.

Here's our comment: We refuse to step down.

In honor of the supposed thirst for knowledge, we will provide some of our reasons.

 

1) Why would we do what our opposition wants us to do?

Despite the seemingly caring demeanor, a member of the opposition is not out for your good. Their request of you should always be circumspect, especially if it is not to build a relationship but to offer an option.

Activists do not wish for your success unless you are aligned. They wish to silence, suppress, and destroy their opposition. Placating them provides the fastest way to lose your self-respect and gain a reputation as a fool and a slave to their desires.

When a person who is your opposition comes to you with a suggestion on how to be better, it should be easy to see the sleight of hand. Remember, the voice of Satan seemed to be concerned for Eve, but the machinations were death and destruction for her progeny.

Listen to the voice of your accuser at your peril.

 

2) We don't need to fully agree with everyone

We're not interested in whether we agree 100% with everything said at any event we go to. In fact, it is expected that no matter where we go, a disagreement in beliefs will occur at some point. It is asinine to assume that positions and beliefs must align perfectly, or else you are in danger of being associated with that thought or idea.

Unfortunately, we live in a culture in which association means reputation. And reputation means everything. While some may concern themselves with every person they could possibly be associated with, we at Self-Evident recognize that at some point, a vindictive enough person can associate you with anybody. Whether it is random comments on an X or Facebook post, something taken out-of-context, or a former leader or associate – the world is rife with "ugly" connections.

Simple-minded people base their judgment of a person on vague associations. The conniving recognizes and uses this to their advantage. It becomes a game of name-dropping with the intended consequence being to damage someone's reputation.

 

3) We're there to minister

We are a ministry. We will go where we're called to speak the truth. We have been invited to organizations in the past that would rankle the feathers of the common Christian or conservative. We didn't care. We went and spoke Jesus. We gave the truth. We prayed with those people. We ministered where we could.

While we are far from being Jesus, He Himself was a man of no reputation. He was often ridiculed by his accusers for spending time with the tax collectors, prostitutes, and drunkards. His goal was to minister, heal, and convert the unwashed masses. The elite and establishment figures didn't like Him because He spent too much time with the outcasts and "associated" with the wrong people and espoused the wrong thoughts and ideas. But they HATED Him because He converted people into His followers. His presence threatened the supposed authority of the elite and therefore was dangerous.

Most importantly, He did not value His reputation among men but continued to do the will of His Father. This disregard for His worldly reputation not only earned Him eternal honor but led Him to the cross – a place He willingly went. Even when evil, inaccurate, and false accusations were lobbed at Him to seal His fate of execution, He continued with His mission.

We as a ministry will go where we are invited and where we're called. Even if it were an event in which we disagreed with the main premise, we would be inclined to go and give the truth. If we're invited to give our message, then we will. After all, the fields are ripe for harvest with a people who need to hear the message of Christ!

 

4) We love True Texas Project

We have a long relationship with True Texas Project. We have done tours across Texas, speaking to their groups and forging relationships with their people. We have never seen the aforementioned antisemitism, white supremacy, and extremist hate that supposedly boils over from every crevice of True Texas Project.

We have seen the groups be nothing but kind, generous, and thoughtfully dedicated to getting active and doing something in their locality. We watched as they prayed openly, ministered to each other, and desired a moral and value-driven Texas.

While progressives may wish to trash and belittle the group, their usual tropes become worn-out and dusty. We get it. Conservatives, especially those deplorable ones who love God, guns, and country must all be racist extremists with Hitleresque aspirations. But at some point, the labels lose meaning. And we will not swallow the tripe of a couple of articles slathering on the labels written by antagonistic outsiders when we personally know and love those who lead and serve in True Texas Project.

 

Conclusion

Some may say that the titles of the breakout sessions are racist, xenophobic, and promote conspiracy theories.

So, we're going to be clear, lest you accuse us of being vague. We agree with plenty of the points being made in these lectures. There may be points we don't agree with, but it does not matter to us. Either way, we will be there to minister and show the light of Christ. We will be there to support a movement we feel is doing great work in Texas. We will show up and give our backing to down-home folks who do not wish to see their country ripped to shreds by those people who have no interest in the history of America but merely wish to wipe the slate clean and build the nation in their own image.

See you in Texas.