there are a handful of topics i try desperately to side-step when talking to my dad: my mom, my sex life (or lack of), my salvation (or lack of), religion and politics. tonight i managed to avoid three of these illicit areas of conversation. my dad starts out with: so what do you think of palin? an expectant tone in his voice suggested he was smiling hopefully. what do i think of palin? it's been three years since i last saw him and he wants me to tell him over the phone what i think of mccain's publicity stunt of a vp? as it became obvious that we would not see eye to eye on this topic, he politely redirected the conversation - without my realizing it - to religion.
he started talking about evolution and people who believe it and call themselves christians. to my father this is unacceptable. he started talking about the image of god and was very offended that anyone could accept evolution in one hand and the bible in the other. i couldn't bite my tongue much longer. he said something about god is not an ape. i replied that nor is god a man - although jesus took the form of a man. i was headed down a slippery slope. i tried to divert the talk to something - almost anything else.
somehow we ended up back at politics; my dad professed that god will direct who wins the presidential nomination. he continued to suggest that everything happens for a reason (i don't disagree) and that god will change "the hearts of men", presumably to affect a favorable outcome. now i admit that i do not call myself a christian, but i grew up in a christian household and like to think that i understand a few major ideas of the religion, such as free will. as far as i know, the whole purpose of humanity is free will. that's why some of us will go to hell, according to the doctrine. that's what happened in eden, right - free will?
i love my dad and try really hard not to hold these differences of perspective against him. but god! it's so frustrating to talk to him sometimes. i'm just glad we avoided talking about sex.
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Kyri lives in Richland, WA and Crystal lives in Spokane, WA. This is one of the ways they are keeping in touch.
1 comment:
i'm sorry you go through that. i'm sure i'd have the same issue if i tried talking to my dad about those issues. thankfully, he never broaches them. and neither do i.
also, evolution is SO COOL! did i TELL you about that dinosaur show i was watching with the chickens with tails? that was the proverbial straw that launched me out of evangelicalism, was evolution and how many people i went to church with would think it unacceptable for me to think it's okay to believe evolution, and that they'd probably literally be praying for my soul if they found out.
the things we find so important...
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