A Christian mother in Maine is continuing her legal battle after the state’s highest court upheld restrictions preventing her from taking her 13-year-old daughter to church or exposing her to certain religious teachings without the approval of the girl’s father. Her attorneys say they hope the U.S. Supreme Court will ultimately review a case they believe raises fundamental questions about religious liberty and parental rights.

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From CBN News:

“This is an astounding and shocking court order. I’ve never seen one in all my 39 years of practice,” Staver said. “It literally wipes out the First Amendment. That’s what the Maine Supreme Court did. It said there’s no First Amendment right to the free exercise of religion.”

Bickford and Ava’s father, Matthew Bradeen, never married. Bickford maintained primary custody of Ava while Bradeen had visitation rights.

Since December 2024, Bickford has challenged a custody order preventing her from taking her daughter to Calvary Chapel in Portland, Maine, despite the court finding her to be a fit parent.

The dispute between Emily Bickford and Matthew Bradeen centers on their daughter, Ava, and disagreements over her religious upbringing. According to CBN News, Bradeen contends that the church environment caused Ava anxiety, including an alleged panic attack after she heard teaching about the Rapture. Bickford disputes that characterization, saying her daughter enjoyed attending church, spending time with other children, and listening to biblical teaching.

The restrictions extend beyond church attendance. According to Bickford’s attorney, Liberty Counsel founder Mat Staver, the custody order gives Bradeen authority over Ava’s exposure to religious beliefs and activities, including certain religious materials. Staver also points to the lower court’s finding that there was “no evidence that Ava has been harmed by any teachings rooted in the Bible.”

The Maine Supreme Judicial Court upheld the restrictions after considering Bickford’s constitutional objections. The court concluded that the lower court had not violated her First Amendment rights and emphasized the family court’s findings concerning Ava’s emotional well-being. Bickford and her attorneys strongly disagree with that constitutional analysis and argue that the restrictions impermissibly burden a fit mother’s free exercise of religion.

The case touches on a broader constitutional tension surrounding parental authority, religious exercise, and a court’s responsibility to determine a child’s best interests during custody disputes. The U.S. Supreme Court has long recognized parents’ constitutional interests in directing the upbringing and education of their children, although those rights can become especially complicated when parents disagree and a court is called upon to resolve a custody dispute.

Staver says he hopes the U.S. Supreme Court will hear Bickford’s case. Until then, Bickford says the ordeal has caused her and her daughter to think more deeply about their faith and what it means to follow Christ in difficult circumstances.

For intercessors, this case raises serious questions about how far government authority should reach into the religious life of a family. Whatever disputes exist between parents, an order restricting a fit mother from taking her child to church or sharing biblical beliefs deserves careful scrutiny. Bickford’s persistence also reminds us that religious liberty cannot be taken for granted. Let’s pray for Emily and Ava, for wisdom and justice as this case proceeds, and for courts across America to respect the constitutional protections surrounding faith and family.

Share your prayers for Emily and Ava and for religious liberty in America below.

(Excerpt from CBN News. Photo Credit: Aaron Burden on Unsplash)