Maine High Court Hears Church Attendance Custody Fight
Maine’s Supreme Court weighs whether a lower Court can bar a mother from taking her daughter to church
Maine’s highest Court is weighing a legal fight involving parental rights and religious freedom after a lower Court order limited a mother’s ability to take her daughter to church.
The case stems from a December 2024 custody ruling involving Emily Bickford, who was barred from taking her 12-year-old daughter to Calvary Chapel in Portland or other Christian events without the father’s approval. The order also restricted her from reading Scripture to her daughter during her custodial time, The Baptist Paper is reporting.
Bickford appealed that order to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, which heard oral arguments in November. Her legal team, including attorneys from Liberty Counsel, argues the lower Court’s decision violates the First Amendment and parental rights by restricting religious practices and church attendance.
In the original custody decision, the District Judge accepted testimony from an expert who described the church’s teachings as potentially “psychologically harmful,” giving the girl’s father, Matthew Bradeen, the final say on their daughter’s involvement with Calvary Chapel.
Liberty Counsel’s founder, Mat Staver, said the order’s breadth raised serious constitutional concerns. “This custody order banning Emily Bickford from taking her child to a Christian church because of its biblical teachings violates the First Amendment,” he said. “The breadth of this Court order is breathtaking because it even prohibits contact with the Bible, religious literature, or religious philosophy.”
The father’s legal team maintained that his concerns stemmed from what he viewed as potential harm linked to the church’s teachings, but Court filings noted that the family dispute began after their daughter expressed a desire to be baptized.
No decision has yet been announced. The Maine Supreme Judicial Court is expected to issue a ruling in the coming weeks that could clarify how far a Court can go in limiting a fit parent’s ability to guide their child’s religious upbringing.
