Evangelical 'elders' absolutely do not like active thinkers, this is true.

I was scared to read the bible for the longest time because a sliver of magical thinking was lingering in the back of my mind, and I feared I would get drawn in farther. Once I finally did read it in full, however, it not only reinforced my thinking on religion, but made me an even more confident and committed Atheist. And now, whenever an evangelical tries to use the bible as a justification for their looking down on others, I just start giving them their bible right back. It's amusing to see them get frustrated with me over it.

Incidentally, I'm now fond of telling the joke "I support biblical marriage...because 700 wives would be AWESOME!"