The Maine Supreme Court has found in favor of a gay father who asked to stop his daughter’s mother from taking the girl to an anti-LGBTQ+ church that “characterized her dad as ‘evil,'” according to a report from LGBTQ Nation.
Reports LGBTQ Nation:
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 Sunday services, Bradeen said Ava listened to testimonials from people who claimed that Jesus had saved them from “sexual and physical trauma, gay and lesbian relationships, and infidelity.” She also brought home work study pages about demons, adultery, and sexual impropriety. Bradeen reportedly never told Ava that he thought her mother and the church were “wrong,” but rather explained to her that people believe in different things and that he personally disagreed with the church’s teachings.