The scene unfolded at a routine Ottumwa council meeting, where Matt Dalbey, a former council member and self-described Satanist, used the newly adopted invocation period to deliver a prayer from the Satanic Temple. The prayer rejected 'arcane doctrines' and 'arbitrary authority,' and concluded with 'Hail Satan.' A local pastor immediately asked to reverse what he called a curse on the city, while councilor Cara Galloway, who had voted against the invocation policy, argued that allowing one viewpoint means allowing all. The mayor called for a moment of silence to move past the exchange.
Dalbey, who served on the council for eight years, said he acted because the new policy improperly mixed religion and government. He listed himself as representing 'none' and has signed up for future invocations, including one in November. The city council passed the invocation resolution in January with Galloway as the sole dissenting vote. The episode is the latest in a decade of Iowa disputes over religious expression in public spaces, including nativity scenes and Satanic displays at the state capitol.