Proselytizing 'scare technique' is the problem

This letter is regarding Ken Ilgunas' column "Religion can go to hell" (Dec. 7). First off let me say thank you for having the courage to write an article like that. I'm reading the article for the first time more than a month after it was published so I'm sure you have had a lot of responses to the article, good and bad.

I myself am a Christian and have been for about four years. I probably would have called myself a Christian since about age 13, due to growing up in a Christian home, but I, too, always hated religion. It seemed to me that it was something that was always pushed on me and I wasn't able to make my own decisions about what I thought. My mom would say, "You are going to church! It is what you are supposed to do on Sunday morning." I hated being pushed into it, so when I went to college and was on my own, I went off the deep end and pushed religion out of my life.

In my opinion, the people that gave Christianity a black eye were the people that came to our campus and would yell at everyone who walked by saying, "you are a sinner and are going to hell." Pushing Christianity down someone's throat is the wrong way to do it. It needs to be that person's choice. I gave my life to Jesus when a friend challenged me to read parts of the Bible. He didn't push it down my throat, he just told me to read and decide for myself. And I did.

I totally agree with you that you can be moral and not be religious. Some Christians have a very narrow view and really like to criticize non-Christians with the scare technique. I disagree with that technique. From the way you talk it sounds like you have questioned your beliefs before and maybe you still do. I don't think you would have written the article if you didn't wonder about it, even just a little bit.