Mortimer Adramelech, The Satanic Temple of Iowa’s media liaison, reads “Paradise Lost” to a small crowd on the Tama County Courthouse lawn Sunday. PHOTO BY MICHAEL D. DAVIS

The Satanic Temple of Iowa had their annual reading of John Milton’s 1667 epic poem Paradise Lost on Sunday. Members of the community and the Temple came and went throughout the day, listening to the reading and wandering about the event.

Prepared for the excruciating heat, the Temple members sat in the shade on the south side of the Tama County Courthouse in the shade of a canopy. Snacks were eaten, water was drank, and the epic poem was read aloud by an ever revolving set of volunteers.

Where last year, a reading of the bible brought out a multitude of Christians to sit and worship in protest to the Temple’s reading, this year, a lone reader sat quietly with his bible. Marshall County resident Brandon Whitmore sat a ways away from the Temple under the shade of a tree. When asked what he was up to, Whitmore said “Reading the bible, as they mentioned, Kim Reynolds has called for religious readings to happen at courthouses across Iowa.”

Although Brandon strongly disagrees with the majority of the Temple’s beliefs, they do have a few things in common.

“But what I do agree with them on is getting out here and opening ourselves to the public and being out here for our cause, and again, although ours is different, it brought me out here; if they weren’t here, I wouldn’t be here, so I think that’s a cool thing,” he said.

PHOTO BY MICHAEL D. DAVIS

Both parties sat on the courthouse lawn on Sunday afternoon, reading their books, not bothering the other.

“They’ve been great, they’ve left me alone, I’ve left them alone, we’re out here together,” Whitmore said about sharing the lawn with the Satanic Temple of Iowa.