A city council in Iowa erupted after a resident opened a meeting with a satanic prayer on Tuesday.Before the meeting of the Ottumwa City Council began, former council member Matt Dalbey opened with an invocation to the "dark father" to "embrace the Luciferian impulse to eat of the tree of knowledge" before ending with a "Hail Satan" declaration.After the council recited the Pledge of Allegiance and took roll, New Life Center pastor Rick Bick interrupted the meeting to demand pushback against Dalbey's invocation.LUTHERAN MINISTER AND HOUSE CANDIDATE UNDER FIRE AFTER RECOUNTING HER PART IN SATANIST COUPLE'S WEDDINGA meeting of Ottumwa City Council began with a satanic prayer on Tuesday.(AP Photo/John Hanna)"Let's just reverse this curse that was put on our city.
That ending with 'Hail Satan' or 'Hail dark god,' that's not welcome here," Bick insisted.Though City Council member Cara Galloway told Bick to save his comments for public discussion, Bick demanded immediate action."It needs to be done now," Bick said."I appreciate what Ms.
Galloway is saying, but that was a curse put on the city.When he said 'Hail Satan' ...
most of you know that, and we need to just stop and reverse it."In response, Ottumwa Mayor Benjamin Foote requested 30 seconds of silence to allow for prayer or reflection and overruled Galloway's efforts to move forward with the meeting.Reacting to the controversy, Foote told Fox News Digital, "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."SWING STATE MAYOR SUED AS CITY’S MUSLIM HOLIDAY DISPLAYS IGNITE RELIGIOUS-FAVORITISM FIGHTFormer council member Matt Dalbey is a member of the Satanic Temple in Iowa, according to the Ottumwa Courier.(Getty Images)After the meeting concluded, Galloway gave additional comments on the matter, repeating past conc...