I have an update! I decided to bite the bullet and just call my dad. I'm glad I did it, because I feel like I really needed to have this conversation to have some closure, and to be able to move on with my life. I expected a combatative phone call with him hanging up on me, but it actually turned out quite different...
After some small talk, he proceeds to inform me how he plans to spend his retirement (which starts in 2014) pioneering , which was an open for me to talk about where I stand with the cult. So after talking about some personal stuff, I got into the meat of what I wanted to say.
I framed my argument around the WT's endtimes claims. I asked him if extraordinary claims should have solid evidence to back them up. to which he responded yes. I then proceeded to go into how the WT's endtimes claims have zero evidence, and have changed many times, and have proven to be false; and that we all have made many poor decisions over the years based on this false premise. I said contantly living your life with a view to an apocolypse is no healthy way to live at all. I asked him, do you think men that are self admitted to being uninspired should be held accountable for misleading people, and all the problems this has caused?
His response was predictable...He said the organization never printed this and that it is run by imperfect men, and it's important to maintain a sense a urgency above all! I rebutted, that there are many quotes in print that I would share with him; additionaly, that there are so many that don't have any retirement savings as direct results of these misleading claims (he is one of them). His response was that there is no retirement in this system of things. Unbelievable!
I asked him what gives uninspired men the authority to tell us that we can't go to college or grow a beard. He said you certainly can grow a beard and go to college! At this point I started to wonder if my father was in a different religion than the one he raised me in or he was going senile. The delusion runs very deep. After discussing a few more points with him, I told him that I was done with the WT, and that I was giving him my reasons for leaving as a courtesy. He responded that I should not not send in a letter of disassociation, which I thought was interesting.
Throughout the conversation the tone was calm, like he already expected it. The conversation ended well, but there was a real sense of detachment there. So at this point we will probably drift apart even more, but at least I'm the one who man'd up and called him after a year of no contact. JW parents are cowards and are the worst parents. Strangly, I feel okay with this, as sad as it sounds. I feel that now I can be unapologetic my stand, and not have to hide and avoid JW bullshit in conversations at future family functions.
