Iowa City Council Meeting Disrupted by Satanic Invocation

A routine Ottumwa City Council meeting in Iowa descended into disarray Tuesday when a former council member, Matt Dalbey, opened the proceedings with a prayer invoking Satan. The invocation, which included phrases like "embrace the Luciferian impulse to eat of the tree of knowledge" and concluded with "Hail Satan," immediately drew a strong reaction from attendees.

Rick Bick, a pastor from the New Life Center, interrupted the meeting to condemn the prayer, calling it a "curse" on the city and demanding immediate action to reverse it. City Council member Cara Galloway initially attempted to defer Bick's comments to the public discussion period, but he insisted the matter required an immediate response. Mayor Benjamin Foote then intervened, requesting 30 seconds of silence for prayer or reflection and overruling Galloway's attempt to proceed with the meeting agenda.

In a statement to Fox News Digital, Mayor Foote disavowed the invocation, stating, "This is not a reflection of our community. As the Mayor of my hometown in Iowa, I know the people of Ottumwa, and the invocation read at the start of Tuesday’s meeting does not represent the faith or the values of families who call this city home."

Dalbey, who is reportedly a member of The Satanic Temple of Iowa, later stated in a private message that the prayer is a common one used by the temple and does not reflect a belief in a satanic deity. The Ottumwa City Council adopted an invocation policy in January, which aims to respect the diversity of beliefs, including the lack thereof, among its citizens.

Council member Galloway expressed prior concerns about the invocation policy, warning that it could lead to conflicts and financial liabilities for the taxpayers. She stated that allowing different viewpoints, including those from groups like the Church of Satan, meant the council would have to permit objections or responses to invocations. "We need to remember that we are up here to be neutral and allow viewpoints because we've opened up invocations," Galloway said.

Council member Bill Hoffman, who left the room during the prayer, defended Dalbey's First Amendment rights. "I'm a Christian man with Christian values. That doesn't mean I don't want to observe his First Amendment right. It just means that I want to use my rights not to observe that," Hoffman stated. He added that he expects the invocation policy to be a subject of future discussion and that the council does not condone the content of Dalbey's prayer.