imageVM

You're right, it's not going to get any better. A couple of points: part of the control the cult exerts on its members is social isolation from all non-JWs. So, he will eventually be put under a lot of pressure to cut all contact with you, unless that contact consists of him preaching to you. There's no point (for him) to listen to you, because he has 'da troof' and you don't.

Second: recruitment of new members, for the JWs, is primarily through families. Not the whole 'door-to-door preaching' nonsense (results in almost no new converts). It is common for people like your b-i-l to recruit several new members for the cult through his extended family. If he succeeded in doing this, he would be a hero of sorts, be held up like an example. JWs are really good at this, using selective refusal to engage in social activities as both emotional blackmail and as a conversation-starter. A perfect situation, for him: you invite him to your son's birthday party, he refuses, then you say "but the family is never all together now". This way he can explain why he doesn't go to birthdays, hopefully get everyone to admire him for being so strong and willing to stand up for his religious convictions, and at the same time he gets to say "well, if you all became JWs, then we could all be together again..."

No, he will never respect you or your religious convictions. He thinks you've been judged by god already, and that you're only awaiting the final 'execution' when god will personally kill you and feed you to the birds. Yes, they mean that literally.

My advice: set ground rules immediately. He doesn't respect your religion, you're under no obligation to respect his. Don't let him blackmail you.

Jody image

  When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs. When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence.
-- Ansel Adams