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The Dark Ages Have Returned! This is an example of court-sanctioned spiritual sabotage! In the day of so-called enlightenment, the dark ages have just returned, and this time it started in the courtroom, and it's about to make it to your community and maybe to your soul.

Get this.  Imagine being told by a family court that your deeply held religious beliefs are "psychologically harmful" to your child—so harmful, in fact, that you're barred from stepping foot in a church, reading a Bible verse aloud, or even letting your kid hang out with Sunday school friends.

This isn't dystopian fiction; it's the stark reality facing Emily Bickford, a devoted mother stripped of her ability to share her Christian faith with her 12-year-old daughter, Ava.

Last week, on November 13, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court heard oral arguments in a case that could redefine the boundaries of religious freedom in custody disputes.

At the heart of the matter is a sweeping lower-court order from December 2024, handed down by Portland District Court Judge Jennifer Nofsinger, which effectively silences Bickford's evangelical convictions under the guise of protecting Ava from "emotional distress." The ruling doesn't just curb church attendance; it erects a fortress around the girl's spiritual life, granting her estranged father, Matthew Bradeen, veto power over every facet of religious exposure.

Bickford and Ava have been fixtures at Calvary Chapel in Portland for over three years, finding solace in its community and teachings. Their bond with the church deepened when Ava, inspired by sermons on redemption, expressed her desire to be baptized last year. It was a milestone moment for a mother and daughter navigating life after Bickford's pre-birth split from Bradeen. But for Bradeen—who shares visitation rights but no marital history with Bickford—it was a red line.

Bradeen rushed to court, armed with claims that the church's messages on sin, salvation, and biblical imagery were triggering Ava's anxiety. He pointed to episodes of panic attacks, scribbled notes about "the rapture," and a workbook entry where Ava described a demon illustration as "scary." To bolster his case, he enlisted Dr. Janja Lalich, a sociologist and self-proclaimed expert on cults, who analyzed Calvary Chapel from afar. Lalich, despite lacking clinical psychology credentials, labeled the church "cultic" based on the pastor's "charismatic" delivery and assertions of "objective truth." Judge Nofsinger—a former president of the Maine ACLU chapter—bought the narrative hook, line, and sinker. 

The judge issued this ruling.  Bickford is forbidden from:

NO Church Attendance—Taking Ava to any church without Bradeen's approval (which he's withheld for all options). Meaning there shall be NO hymns, prayer, Bible reading, or worship, and NO SINGING AMAZING GRACE!

NO Christian Friends—Associating Ava with Calvary Chapel members, including cutting ties with long-term Christian friends if they attend.

NO Christmas or Easter—Participating in Christian holidays like Christmas or Easter, even at neutral events like weddings or funerals.

NO Bible—Exposing Ava to the Bible, religious literature, or "any religious philosophy."

NO Donating—Engaging with faith-based charities, from food banks run by the Salvation Army to crisis pregnancy centers.

Mat Staver, chairman of Liberty Counsel and Bickford's attorney, argued it's a "nuclear option" that mocks the mother's fitness as a parent solely because of her Christianity.

The judge even refused to capitalize "God" in the ruling and scolded Bickford for letting the pastor pray for Ava—a petty jab that reeks of bias.

But wait! The First Amendment guarantees parents the right to direct their children's religious upbringing, a principle enshrined in U.S. Supreme Court precedents like Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972) and Troxel v. Granville (2000). Even when parents' faiths clash—say, one atheist and one devout—courts can't play spiritual referee unless there's clear evidence of abuse or imminent harm.

Bradeen's camp insists the order safeguards Ava from indoctrination, framing Calvary Chapel as a high-control group. It's a slippery slope: If evangelical teachings can be deemed "cultic," what's next? Yoga classes? Meditation apps? Any worldview that challenges secular norms?

Will the justices see through the animus and restore balance? They believe it is their duty to use religious hostility in the name of safeguarding rights and protecting democracy.

Final Word: That evil judge won’t understand justice until he stands before the ultimate judge! But then it will be too late!