Unholy Father

Eleven months ago, Matthew Bradeen secured an order from the Portland District Court giving him the exclusive power to decide which religious activities his 12-year-old daughter, Ava, may participate in.

Bradeen's relationship with Ava's mother, Emily Bickford, ended before Ava was born. Bickford has primary custody of Ava; Bradeen has visitation rights.

Bickford and her daughter have been attending Calvary Chapel, an evangelical Christian church in Portland, for more than three years. After Ava told her dad last year that she was planning to be baptized, he went to court to stop it.

According to Liberty Counsel chairman Mat Staver, who is representing Bickford, Bradeen took his case to a judge who is "a former ACLU president" and obtained expert testimony from Dr. Janja Lalich, "a Marxist former sociology professor from California."

Bradeen claimed that, after she began attending Calvary Chapel, Ava "started having severe panic attacks and exhibited alarming psychological signs — like leaving notes around the house that said 'the rapture is coming,'" wrote Maine's NBC affiliate WCSH.

Liberty Counsel noted that Lalich, an "expert on cults,"testified that she had "studied" Calvary Chapel Church and found that the church's pastor was a "charismatic" speaker, spoke "authoritatively" in his messages, and … asserted his messages were objective truth. Because of this, Dr. Lalich perceived the church to be a "cultic" organization[.] Despite not being a psychologist, Dr. Lalich testified it was "evident" that the church posed a potential for psychological harm to the girl.

Newsweek reported:

court found that teachings and depictions used in the church's services and youth materials — including images of "fallen angels" and messages about "eternal suffering" — had caused psychological distress to the child.

Accordingly, the court concluded that exposure to those teachings created a risk of "psychological harm."

Anti-religious Order

However, observed Staver:

The judge found that Emily is a fit parent EXCEPT for the fact that she is a Christian. The judge mocked Ava and Emily's faith by purposefully refusing to capitalize the word "God" — something I have never seen. The judge even chastised Emily for allowing the church pastor to pray for Ava. And the judge ruled that Emily could not take Ava to ANY church unless Matt approves. And Matt has steadfastly refused to approve ANY church. [Emphasis in original.]