You're basically conceding that the best you can hope for is to get the child to finish the semester, then you'll let rip with scriptural arguments and ensure the school completely cuts all ties with your family.
Pretty much. We weren't intending to put him in another year anyhow. This year cost $8,500, and we were only able to do that with my wife's income from her job, which she won't have next year. We are thinking of doing homeschool, now that he has the basics of reading and writing.
I think you're giving up too quickly and just assuming right now that you're going to have a debate and get kicked out, you're just hoping to delay the inevitable for a few months. That is a defeatist attitude. You can do better than that.
Set your sights on the goal of your children being permanently welcome at the school. If you fail, well you'll at least get them to the end of the semester. If your goal is only to get to the end of the semester though, failure will mean being kicked out today.
We don't even live in Round Rock any more, so if we ever decide to put him back in a Christian School, it would have to be one that is closer to where we live. We'll just test him into that school like we did with his older brother. I don't like the idea of having to sign an agreement that I will live by somebody else's idea of Biblical principles, so that may not even happen.
So what to do? I think you're way overcomplicating this, you're still trying to find a way of winning the debate. And I'll also admit that my initial advice ALSO overcomplicated it - and this is because I too suffer from the same desire you have to win, and try to find a method that will achieve the outcome I want. Others who have posted after me have simplified the advice considerably. Pay attention to the attitude and general intent, not so much the method.
Well, I am intentionally trying to "lose" the debate in order to diffuse the situation. I have had enough conversations with people on this topic, that I know that I could have easily done that with them, by not giving them the full measure of truth that I have come to know. These people are so predictable, it is not even funny.
You're still being far too adversarial. You're still intending to have a debate, you just intend to lose the debate. If you do that, you'll come across as a scriptural illiterate who intends to be polygamous regardless - that could look even worse than the truth. And that plan will likely fail anyway, as you can't lose - even if you tie one of your hands behind your back you'll win. But there's a good chance the debate is not going to go more than a couple of sentences anyway, there's not going to be enough time to win or lose. The very fact that you debate with them at all is the thing that will cause the breach between them and your family.
Well, I will hold off on marrying a second wife, until after I have an opportunity to respond, and I will most definitely respond, when they no longer have the opportunity to threaten my child with expulsion. As far as the debate is concerned, it won't have to go too far. I present my case, that Scripture mentions polygamy, they come back with their standard arguments. I'll simply shrug and say, "OK, fine", and then assure them that I don't want to do something if it is wrong. That can happen in less than 15 minutes. They will probably want to know why I would want to do this. I can then explain how it would be beneficial to us to have someone who could pick up my son from school, and how much it is costing us to keep him in after school child-care, and then say, "I guess I can't do that." I know these people will want to accommodate, and they weren't charging us for after school care when I was able to pick him up at 4:15, but now with my new job, I can't pick him up until around 6:00. That would be a nice way of getting them to provide childcare for free. Not saying that
will happen, but when you are dealing with someone you know is going to be unreasonable and unfair, I don't feel like accepting that offer, which would certainly help us out financially, is something immoral.
Yes, I intend to pretend to be somewhat Scripturally illiterate, only for the time being, but of course, if I do not come back later, and point out that they are wrong, and then I do go ahead and get a second wife, that
would look worse than the truth. That is why I will have no choice but to let rip with scriptural arguments. I won't likely be in position to marry anyone until after the school year is finished, anyway.
However, given that you personally have raised this question with them, it's going to be rather difficult to turn around and claim that this issue isn't important to you. So this is going to be much harder for you than if they'd raised the issue themselves. You will need to consider precisely what you have said to them in order to work out what defusing path is still open to you.
Yeah, I would have a hard time claiming that this issue isn't important to me, even if I hadn't said anything to them, because I know that would not be honest. I don't think allowing them to win an argument where they hold all the cards, is going to be all that difficult. I never met anyone who objected to polygamy, who didn't at least attempt to prove me wrong.
#WinWinForAll
