A city council meeting in Iowa erupted into controversy Tuesday night after a former council member delivered a satanic invocation, prompting a local pastor to interrupt the proceedings and call for the prayer to be reversed.

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The incident occurred in Ottumwa, Iowa, where former council member Matt Dalbey opened the meeting with a prayer invoking Satan and encouraging those present to reject traditional religious doctrines. The invocation was permitted under a policy adopted by the city earlier this year.

From the Daily Wire:

“Let us pray, dear Dark Father,” Dalbey began. Dalbey went on to call for attendees to “embrace the Luciferian impulse to eat of the tree of knowledge” and reject what he described as “arcane doctrines born of fearful minds in darkened times.”

He also called for individuals to be judged according to their “concrete actions” rather than “arbitrary social norms,” urged the council to approach problems with “agnosticism in all things,” and called for opposition to “any and all arbitrary authority that threatens the personal sovereignty of one or all.” The invocation concluded: “That which will not bend must break, and that which can be destroyed by truth should never be spared its demise. It is done. Hail Satan!”

Video of the meeting shows at least one person in the room sitting down during the invocation. Other people visible on the video feed appeared visibly uncomfortable as Dalbey delivered the satanic prayer. The council then ironically proceeded to the Pledge of Allegiance, including the words “one nation under God.”

According to the Ottumwa Courier, Pastor Rick Bick of the New Life Center immediately objected after the Pledge of Allegiance, declaring that the invocation had placed a curse on the city.

When council member Cara Galloway told Bick to wait until public comment, he insisted that the matter needed to be addressed immediately. Mayor Benjamin Foote ultimately called for a 30-second moment of silence, despite Galloway’s objections.

Dalbey later explained that he belongs to The Satanic Temple of Iowa, a non-theistic religious organization that does not profess belief in a literal Satan. Nevertheless, the explicitly satanic language of the invocation alarmed those who viewed it as an affront to their faith.

The controversy stems partly from Ottumwa’s invocation policy, adopted in January, which permits representatives of religious and nonreligious belief systems to deliver opening remarks. The policy prohibits proselytizing and disparaging other beliefs but also prevents city officials from reviewing or restricting invocations in advance.

Galloway, the only council member who opposed the policy, argued that Tuesday’s events demonstrated precisely the problem she had anticipated. City Administrator Philip Rath similarly acknowledged that the policy allows controversial invocations and warned that restricting participation could invite legal challenges.

Dalbey is scheduled to deliver another invocation on November 3.

The incident also recalls a controversy from December 2023, when The Satanic Temple of Iowa installed a Baphomet display inside the Iowa State Capitol. Gov. Kim Reynolds condemned the display as objectionable but defended the principle of responding to offensive expression with more speech. The display was subsequently destroyed by a Christian man.

At IFA, we have tracked the shocking rise of Satanism in America. This story is yet another example of the Enemy of our souls abusing religious freedom laws to attack Christianity and the foundations of America.

Let’s pray for Ottumwa and communities across America. May God grant our local leaders wisdom and discernment, strengthen pastors who speak boldly for biblical truth, and draw people away from spiritual darkness and toward the light of Christ.

Share your prayers for Ottumwa and America’s local leaders in the comments below.

(Excerpt from the Daily Wire. Photo Credit: Gwengoat/Getty Images Signature via Canva Business)