A satanic invocation at an Iowa city council meeting has left a self-described born-again Christian mayor confronting a difficult question: how can the city preserve public prayer while maintaining a policy that welcomes different beliefs? Ottumwa Mayor Benjamin Foote says he is reviewing both the city's rules and a speaker's scheduled return after an October 6 invocation provoked an immediate objection from a local pastor.
According to The Christian Post, former council member Matthew Dalbey, now a member of The Satanic Temple of Iowa, delivered the opening invocation and concluded with "Hail Satan." His remarks invoked Satan as his "dear dark father" and referenced the Genesis account of eating from the tree of knowledge.
Pastor Rick Bick of New Life Center objected after the Pledge of Allegiance, describing the invocation as a curse on the city. "That 'Hail Satan' is not welcome here," he said, urging officials to address the matter immediately rather than wait for the public-comment period.
Foote responded by calling for 30 seconds of silence. Councilman Bill Hoffman Jr. took a different approach, leaving the chamber during the invocation and praying privately in the hallway for wisdom, strength, and protection for the city.
The controversy sharpened when officials explained that Dalbey had followed the city's established process. Hoffman told The Christian Post that the invocation had been approved under city policy, although council members did not know its content beforehand.
That distinction places the approval process at the center of the dispute. Ottumwa's invocation policy, approved in January, expressly recognizes organized and unorganized religious denominations, other belief systems, and residents with no religious beliefs.
In an October 7 Facebook statement, the city said it had received calls from upset members of the public but maintained that it could not discriminate against a denomination. Officials also stressed that allowing someone to deliver an invocation did not mean the city endorsed the speaker's words.
Foote acknowledged the religious-freedom concerns behind the policy while making his personal opposition clear. He told The Christian Post that protecting freedom of religion and speech helps prevent government interference in worship, but said the invocation shocked him as a Christian.
His proposed response now raises the story's most pressing question: what specific policy provision did Dalbey violate? Foote said he intends to document areas where the invocation failed to meet city rules and then inform Dalbey that he cannot deliver another one.
Dalbey was scheduled to return November 3, according to the city website cited in the report. Foote said that appearance was under review; the supplied report does not establish that a final cancellation or revised policy has been issued.
The mayor is also considering changes intended to preserve prayer while preventing similar statements. Whether those changes address the conduct of speakers, the content of invocations, or the approval process will be crucial to understanding what the city ultimately decides.
For Bick, the incident demanded an immediate spiritual response. In a subsequent interview with Family Research Council President Tony Perkins, the pastor acknowledged that his intervention may have been out of order but said he felt compelled to challenge what he believed had occurred.
Foote expressed hope that the controversy would prompt churches in Ottumwa to pray and become more engaged. His response makes clear that he sees the episode as a spiritual concern as well as a matter of city administration.
The next development will be whether officials identify a documented policy violation, revise the invocation rules, or allow Dalbey's scheduled return. Until then, Ottumwa faces an unresolved test of how its stated commitment to religious diversity operates when an approved speaker delivers words that elected officials and residents find deeply objectionable.
