Maine Court Denies Mother Taking Daughter to Conservative Church

Wonderful example of hierarchies masquerading as a religion. 

The Maine Supreme Judicial Court held that a father could restrict his ex-wife from taking his daughter to a particular church in which the pastor disparaged the father during the service and preached on topics that affected the relationship between father and daughter.

The mother was taking their child to services at Calvary Chapel Greater Portland where the pastor testified to teaching about the terrors of hell and of the Great Tribulation. Bradeen said this led his daughter to question why her father and his other child would not be going to heaven. Without consulting with her ex-husband, the mother also arranged for the child to be baptized, took their daughter to a political rally with other church members, and allowed her to go on a retreat where she was not permitted to have her cell phone. 

The mother also took their daughter to a church service where the pastor offered a six-and-a-half-minute-long prayer, during which he referenced her ex-husband by name, described him as in need of salvation, accused him of attacking the church, and described the child as being persecuted. Bickford did not remove her daughter during the prayer, which Bradeen argues has endangered their relationship. 

https://firstamendment.mtsu.edu/article/bickford-v-bradeen-maine-supreme-judicial-court-sept-1-2026/

Gloria Steinem.- A Great Leader for Great Causes

Calling herself “an entrepreneur of social change,” Gloria Steinem helped usher in sweeping cultural transformations. For more than half a century, she personified the women’s movement and became its most enduring symbol.

As part of the women's movement in the 1970's and 1980's, we, Charlotte and Harriet, saw Gloria Steinem many times at national and state ralies. She was a great leader and inspiration. 

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/03/us/politics/gloria-steinem-dead.html

Interaction with Dogs Can Improve our Lives, Scientific Study Proves

We know that human-dog interaction brings meaningful emotional support and health advantages. Using electroencephalography. researchers revealed that petting a dog and making eye contact stimulates higher brain activity in the beta and gamma frequency bands compared to touching a stuffed toy dog. Interactions with a dog can improve attention and concentration. 

interactions with dogs can increase brain activity in the beta and gamma power spectra in healthy participants, thereby activating attention and concentration. Additionally, the subjective evaluation of emotions indicated that engagements with dogs elicited positive emotional responses.

The more we break down the human/animal hierarchy, the better for us and the world. 

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-026-45639-2

Can Dolly Parton Give Us a Way to Respond to Being Treated as a Lower Group?

“Dolly,” Barbara Walters asked, “Where I come from, would I have called you a hillbilly? … When I think of hillbillies, am I thinking of your kind of people?” 

“I think you probably are,” Dolly replied. “But we were very proud people, people with a lot of class. It was country class, but it was a great deal of class. And most of my people were not that educated, but they are very, very intelligent. Good common sense — horse sense, we called it.”

Dorie Clark, the author of this article, calls Parton’s move the “label upgrade” strategy, and it’s a way to simultaneously maintain your dignity and disarm the person who’s talking down to you.

Dolly is neither denying she’s a hillbilly, nor getting mad at what could easily be seen as an insult. Instead, she claims the label and revises what it means.

https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/31/when-someone-talks-down-use-dolly-partons-simple-trick-maintain-dignity-disarm-communication-expert.html

Inclusivity Brings Church Back from the Brink

Glendale United Methodist Church in Nashville, Tennessee has been revised. Nine years ago, only 12-25 people attended weekly services. Now the number is 125. 

Steven Adair, a church leader who has attended the church all his life, knew that changes had to be made or Glendale would eventually close.

“I watched my church die a slow death in front of my eyes for the first 30 years of my life,” said Adair, leads the communications outreach at Glendale among other duties.

A welcome message is read out loud every Sunday:

“We at Glendale United Methodist Church want you to know that no matter where you’ve come from or where you are going; what you believe or what you may doubt; what you are feeling or just not feeling; what you have or don’t have; and no matter the color of your skin, who you love or how you identify — all of you are welcomed into this community of faith by a God who loves you and knows you by name.”

Glendale made itself visible as a friend of LGBTQ people by participating in the annual Nashville Pride parade and festival.

https://www.umnews.org/en/news/inclusivity-brings-church-back-from-the-brink?utm_id=97758_v0_s00_e0_tv4_a1demo0ecs1j8o&fbclid=IwY2xjawTgcO1leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFPNmVTZmxuMzJzcjU5U2w1c3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHgy8PY_lk7eAtAIk82yZK5WV5dyIesnS0h1q9Wfq-HnC6ylehfPQcGnZuvGq_aem_AzqCkQaK3DSQ479YvHG31g

Mormon Retention Among Young People is Decreasing

From another source: “While Mormon retention looked solid in the early 2000s, in the years since, as Millennial Mormons moved through emerging adulthood, they began exiting the LDS church in dramatic, unprecedented numbers,” according to sociologist Christian Smith. 

In his recent book, Smith stated that “Why Religion Went Obsolete,” the LDS church was once “legendary for its impressive retention rates among young people.” 

As our population is coming to grips with how hierarchies keep people engaged, perhaps this is an example of how more younger people are rejecting hierarchical religions along side other hierarchical institutions. 

https://religionnews.com/2025/12/10/us-gen-zers-and-millennials-are-leaving-the-lds-church-data-confirms/

UN Human Rights Chair Opposed by Countries of Trump, Putin, and Netanyahu.

Men considered by some to be the three most dangerous in the world - Trump, Putin, and Netanyahu - lead countries that oppose the appointment of UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk for a second term. 

Men who are so intent on building hierarchies with themselves on top, such as Trump, Putin, and Netanyahu, are predictably opposed to efforts to call out countries and people who refuse to treat people with dignity and respect. 

The 27-nation European Union stated that is wholeheartedly supports the reappointment.

https://apnews.com/article/turk-human-rights-chief-united-nations-61dc91622d141da0aba689e6436ea47c