Letter: Ecstatic clubs

I WAS very disturbed by your article about nightclubs ("Meet Tracey, the first nightclub chaplain in Britain", 1 February). A number of "charismatic" Christian groups have realised that nightclubs are good places to recruit, as many of those attracted to the night scene are vulnerable young people. Excited at suddenly finding themselves with lots of new friends, an esoteric group to belong to, and a busy church- based social life, they are quickly drawn into the highly dubious practice of experience-based Christianity, including the induction of "mesmeric crisis" states to simulate divine ecstatic experiences.

A group like this has been operating in many "alternative" clubs in Leeds for several years, and I am disturbed by the influence they have had on a number of people I know.

M Shrewsbury

Leeds