State Supreme Court says dad can stop mom from bringing child to "harmful" anti-LGBTQ+ churchhttps://www.lgbtqnation.com/2026/09/state-supreme-court-says-dad-can-stop-mom-from-bringing-child-to-harmful-anti-lgbtq-church/ 🔗Daniel Villarreal (2 Sep 2026)
The Maine Supreme Court ruled unanimously on Tuesday that a father can prevent his daughter's mother from taking the child to an anti-LGBTQ+ church in Maine. The mother was represented by the Christian nationalist legal group the Liberty Counsel, which drew national attention to the parents' custody battle by portraying the child's dad as anti-Christian.
The case involves Matthew Bradeen and Emily Bickford – two parents who never married and separated as a couple over a decade ago – and their 12-year-old daughter Ava. In 2021, Bickford began taking Ava to Calvary Chapel. When he started noticing changes in Ava's behavior, he asked a court to change his and Bickford's custody agreement to give him greater control over Ava's religious upbringing, Friendly Atheist reported.
Bradeen said that Bickford took Ava to a church service during the week and two services held on Sundays. He said the church began teaching Ava about the end of the world in the Book of Revelation, demons, suffering in Hell, and the reign of Antichrist, which reportedly made his daughter start experiencing "fear and anxiety" and panic attacks, and compelled her to try to convert Bradeen so that he wouldn't go to Hell.
During one church service that Ava attended, Pastor Travis Carey spoke about the custody battle between Bickford and Bradeen and claimed that Bradeen had hired a private detective to "find dirt" on the church. The speech characterized Bickford and the church as being on the side of "good" and Bradeen as being on the side of "evil"; the pastor referred to Bradeen and the government as an "enemy" who seeks to "crush," "quench," and "strangle" the church and Ava's faith.------------------------------------------------
@Sarah B
