After Satanic event at Iowa courthouse, local leaders want to change the rules (again)

For the second time, a reading event sponsored by The Satanic Temple has prompted a policy change by Christians in elected office

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A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about how officials in Iowa changed the rules for who could use the State Capitol in order to prevent Satanists from holding a marathon reading of “Paradise Lost.” (That move inadvertently banned an event helping homeless veterans find jobs.)

The new rules said events inside the Capitol couldn’t last longer than one day. They also capped events sponsored by any group to one a year—which meant Satanists would have to choose between holding a one-day reading of “Paradise Lost” or having a display inside the Capitol this December. Finally, the new agreement prohibited any events inside the Capitol that might be deemed “obscene,” which could open the door to future free speech lawsuits.

In any case, The Satanic Temple wasn’t going to let that stop them. Republican Governor Kim Reynolds had signed a proclamation declaring an “Iowa 99 County Bible Reading Marathon,” and the Satanists had every intention of holding their own multi-day reading event in response.

Instead of using the Capitol, they requested and received space to hold a two-day reading outside the Tama County Courthouse in Toledo on September 16 and 17. They got the approval they needed, though there was some confusion with their request since the county’s Board of Supervisors thought they were saying yes to a Bible-reading event:

“I said that we would like to hold a ‘Paradise Lost’ reading marathon on the Tama County Courthouse lawn,” [Satanic Temple Minister Mortimer Adramelech] said. “The Iowa 99 County Bible Reading Marathon was brought up, and I said that our event was similar in concept. It was never my intention to mislead anyone about the nature of our event.”

That shouldn’t have mattered anyway. If the space was open for public use, the text was irrelevant. This is the same space, after all, where Bible readings take place under the same rules.

The event took place last week, with people reading “Paradise Lost” from 8:30am to about 7:30pm each day, and guess what? It was perfectly uneventful. No Christians were harmed during the reading of a non-Bible book. Because they finished the reading earlier than expected, on the morning of the second day, they used the rest of their time to read “The Revolt of The Angels” by Anatole France.

A Satanist reads outside the Tama County Courthouse (image via Mortimer Adramelech)

All of this probably would have gone under the radar… until the Tama County Board of Supervisors decided they couldn’t let this happen ever again.

Just as the Satanists began their reading, Board members did their best imitation of state officials and tried to change the rules.

The new policy, drafted by Tama County Human Resources Manager Tammy Wise based on suggestions from an attorney, has more requirements for those who want to gain permission to use the lawn in the future. Insurance will have to be proven, and a $100 deposit will have to be submitted.

That won’t stop the Satanists, of course, but what was stunning to hear was how Board members said all the quiet parts out loud, making it clear that this rule change targeted Satanists. One supervisor even said out loud how they were all “God-fearin’ people” but were obligated to follow the law because of that pesky First Amendment.

“We’ve gotten calls, we’ve got emails, ‘We’re worried you approved it.’ We didn’t approve it, none of us, we’re all God fearin’ people. Nobody knew what was going on, but unfortunately, the First Amendment dictates what we can do and can’t do,” Board of Supervisors Chairman Curt Hilmer said. “Are they gonna recruit anybody from Tama County? God, I hope not. They’re just here to get attention. I hope there’s no newspapers, I hope there’s no TV cameras. I hope there’s nothing.”

Hilmer fear Satanists would “recruit” locals, hoped that they would receive little or no attention, and admitted they approved the event before they understood what it was (not that it would have mattered).

His admission also revealed that the Board would have blocked the Satanists… if that was legally possible.

Adramelech told me in an email that Hilmer’s comments were “truly bizarre.”

The right to freedom of religion, freedom to assemble, and freedom of the press are clearly outlined [in the First Amendment].

Our "Paradise Lost" Reading Marathon was submitted to the county auditor and approved by the Board of Supervisors for Tama County, just as the county's Bible Reading Marathon has done for years. 

Satanic Temple members do not proselytize. Our religious beliefs and symbols deserve to be represented in the public forum just as much as other religious perspectives.

Hilmer eventually said if he had to choose between continuing the open forum policy (where anyone can request space) and shutting it down to all groups, he would prefer shutting it down:

“If it keeps happening (the Satanists using the courthouse lawn), I would probably vote for not letting anything happen over there,” Hilmer said. “It’s sad because it affects the good people.”

“The good people.” Those are the ones, in his view, who share his faith. Everyone else—Jews, Muslims, Satanists, atheists—are evil, apparently. Hilmer was willing to ban everyone from using the public space in order to stop the groups he doesn’t like from making use of it.

What an utterly awful thing to say, especially coming from an elected official.

And what were those “good people” doing when the Satanists were holding their event? Trying to disrupt it.

A glance out of the supervisors meeting room window Monday morning showed that another group was gathered on the aforementioned bandstand. Christians, led by local pastor Adam Todd from the Solid Rock Bible Church in Toledo, hosted a reading of the Bible on the bandstand and courthouse lawn without permission from the City of Toledo or Tama County. As the Satanists read in the shade of a tree, only a few feet away, the local Christians stood under the sun reading in protest before leaving around 4 p.m. Monday, several hours before the Satanists.

The Christians were allowed to gather in the same area without permission—and no punishment—all while elected leaders were inside the courthouse trying to figure out how to block Satanists from acquiring permission in the future.

Adam Todd, by the way, is the same batshit crazy pastor who said last year that a Santa display allowed to go up next to a Nativity scene was an example of atheists and satanists trying to murder Baby Jesus.

Lucien Greaves, co-founder of The Satanic Temple, told me Hilmer’s comments were appalling and deserve closer attention from Iowans:

Iowans should be embarrassed to know that they employ a frightened and confused representative who sees the First Amendment as an unfortunate inconvenience, failing to understand the most fundamental underpinnings of American democracy, and presuming to tell the public what kind of religious people they are, or should be.

In all of a single statement, Curt Hilmer reveals an ignorance that goes beyond a mere misunderstanding of our religion, demonstrating a complete lack of awareness, or respect for, the most basic elementary principles of law. Such commentary leaves no question that he is entirely unqualified for public office. 

Christian groups have not remarked on the new policy yet, at least not publicly, but this is all the more reason for non-Christian groups to take advantage of public spaces. By using them the same way Christians are, they’re exposing the fact that many elected leaders can’t handle religious freedom when it involves groups that don’t share their views.

Justin Scott, an Iowa atheist who’s fought many church/state battles there, told me he was proud of the Satanists for the way they’ve handled this: “Christian Nationalists need to realize that atheists, Satanists, and other non-Christians will no longer be silenced or intimidated. We’ll continue to assert our religious freedom, loudly and proudly in the public square.”

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