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New co-pastors settle into life at Calvary Baptist
Former S.C. residents are partners in life and ministry
Revs. Sally Sarratt and Maria Swearingen say their pastoral strengths complement each other nicely. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
As a child, Rev. Maria Swearingen felt a connection to the sacraments of the church in a way that was, looking back, perhaps unusual.
Helping her grandfather fill communion trays with crackers and grape juice on Saturday afternoons and seeing the table set on Sunday mornings knowing she’d had a hand in it, made her feel “overcome with just this profound sense of joy, that I participated in the setting of the table,” she says.
Those are skills she and her wife, Rev. Sally Sarratt will put to good use as co-senior pastors of Calvary Baptist Church in Chinatown. Their first Sunday was Feb. 26, so they’re still getting used to their new roles, their first joint pastorate.
Sarratt was previously a hospital chaplain and was filling in for a minister on sabbatical at Greenville Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Greenville, S.C. Swearingen was associate university chaplain at Furman University and spent the last year working with a cohort of clergy to develop a year-long training program for religious leaders focused on dismantling white supremacy and racism.
The couple, together since late 2009 (they’d met the previous year at church), weren’t necessarily looking for a co-pastorate but it was something they’d dreamed and talked about. Calvary’s last pastor, Rev. Amy Butler, left in 2014 to become senior pastor at New York’s famed Riverside Church, one of the few progressive non-denominational churches in the country. Rev. Allyson Robinson, who’s transgender, was interim minister. Sarratt and Swearingen say their sexual orientation (they both identify as lesbians) was a non-issue.
“The fact that we happened to be a same-sex couple wasn’t even part of their conversation,” Sarratt says. “Calvary had already kind of done the work to say, ‘Look, we’re welcoming and affirming,’ … so it really wasn’t an issue for the (search) committee.”
The job ad said the church was open to considering a co-pastorate. They both work at the church full time and say their gifts and strengths are different enough as to be complementary, although they share preaching duties. Mostly either one or the other will deliver the sermon, but they are experimenting with co-sermonizing, an idea they’re toying with for Easter Sunday.
“As we met and talked with Sally and Maria about their vision for pastoral leadership … we were struck by their deep faith and commitment to being part of a gospel community,” says Carol Blythe, chair of the search committee. “We were impressed by how their gifts, talents and experience matched our ministry priorities and we’re thrilled about their upcoming pastorate and the versatility the co-pastor model will provide our congregation.”
Sarratt says the compensation package the church offered them “is very fair.”
So is it unusual for a Baptist church to be so open-minded? Not really. Calvary is part of the American Baptist Churches USA movement, which has about 1.3 million members in about 5,000 congregations. There are 42 million Baptists around the world that trace their tradition to the early 17th century. Calvary has no ties to the Southern Baptist Convention, the largest Protestant group in the United States with about 15 million members and a much more conservative, anti-gay agency.
Sarratt and Swearingen grew up in more conservative strains of the denomination and though they each attended Methodist seminaries, they have strong Baptist roots. Swearingen remembers some “fire and brimstone” preaching in her youth but says her theology has evolved.
Swearingen says to her, being Baptist means valuing separation of church and state, religious liberty and belief in the priesthood of all believers.
“That’s kind of the gift of what Baptist life can be, that’s what the word can hold,” she says. “For quite some time, it hasn’t looked that way in lots of spaces that call themselves Baptist, but I’m all about being invested in reclaiming that word.”
Looking back, though, she says she’s amazed that even in the theology of her youth, progressive beliefs managed to seep in.
“What I think is so uncanny and persnickety about the way the gospel can work is … the overturning and upturning of unjust, un-mutual systems of power, these things would still find their way into the cracks and crevices,” she says. “The goodness of faith life and practices was findings its way to me even amidst really problematic and damaging theology and it’s really what we, ministry wise, are invested in as much as anything. How do we unearth and let go of and heal from all kinds of theological language that really has just been a perpetuation of oppression and really find freedom and release from that so we can use and live inside language that actually invites wholeness?”
It’s a recurring theme in her ministerial philosophies and similar strains pop up when asked about the future of the mainline church, trends in church attendance among Millennials and even what lessons the Easter message has for today.
Sarratt says for her, getting to that place has been a process. She speaks of “digging and deconstructing and reconstructing” various theology over time.
“One of the things I worry about and feel sad about is the fact that in many ways, queer people still think, ‘I either choose my faith or I choose who I am,’” Sarratt says. “The integration and wedding of the two and either one being able to bless the fullness of who you are is still kind of a rare thing.”
Neither Sarratt nor Swearingen were out when they met in the summer of 2008. Both planning to pursue full-time ministry and didn’t see any way to be out, especially in the Bible Belt, while being pastors.
“Mariah was headed back to school in Durham and it was one of those things like, ‘Well, that was great, but I’m feeling called to ministry so this can’t happen, it can’t be,’” Sarratt says.
But their connection — Swearingen says, “You know, love — yada, yada” — was persistent.
“By the fall of 2009 we were kind of like, ‘Yeah, this is so real and profound, how do we choose both of these paths?’ We didn’t know but we started saying, maybe it’s time to start walking in that direction … of trying to do ministry and family and life together,” Sarratt says.
Coming out, she says, was a “long, slow, cautious, careful process.”
Swearingen says it came down to the decision all out LGBT people eventually make. “Am I choosing to live embodied in my real self or in some constructed reality of me,” she says. “Freedom always comes when we keep pressing more into our authentic selves. … and it’s deep, difficult work of … really claiming and choosing one’s self.”
Sarratt calls it “being able to see one’s self as a beloved child of God.”
Eventually there were three marriages of sorts. They privately shared vows in 2011, had a commitment ceremony with family and friends in 2014 and made it legal as soon as they could the Tuesday before Thanksgiving in 2014 at a Greenville courthouse.
They say early signs at Calvary are positive. They’re spending the first several months meeting individually with staff, board members and parishioners. About a hundred worshippers attend on an average Sunday. Several other congregations and outside groups use the massive downtown facility throughout the week. The couple guesses about 20 percent of the congregation are LGBT.
Sarratt says her strengths are in business, systems thinking and spiritual formation. She says Swearingen, who’s bilingual, is much better at creative worship planning.
“Even if I invested all my time and energy into being a creative worship planner, I’d still only have maybe as much as she has in her pinky,” Sarratt says. “It’s just one of those things where you get to use your gifts without having to shore up those parts of the job you’re not as good at naturally.”
They say they’re mindful of falling into potential trouble areas — not making time for a life outside of church together or the possibility of getting swept up in church politics. Or even, perhaps more innocuously, finding some factions of the congregation favoring one over the other.
So what will success look like? And with society slowly shifting toward progress on LGBT and all kinds of issues, why are the big, downtown, progressive churches often struggling while the anti-gay evangelical churches continue to thrive?
“It’s hard to kind of treat the litmus test if you will as large swaths of people who can afford big buildings,” Swearingen says. “But if you’re imagining the work of justice building and peace building, those are movements that don’t always create a success that can be pointed to, which, quite simply, wouldn’t be what I’d call a goal I’d get excited about. It’s the work itself, the outcomes and the goals are different.”
She says looking at the work through that alternate lens creates a much different perspective on effective ministry.
“For me, the questions would be are the people who have understood themselves to be marginalized, dispossessed and oppressed, finding space to be whole? If the answer to that is yes, then we’re being the church, but if the answer is, ‘I’m not so sure, but look at this really cool building we just built,’ I struggle to call those outcomes fruitful church work.”
New Calvary pastors share favorites
Favorite hymn?
SWEARINGEN: “Great is Thy Faithfulness,” but especially Yvette Flunder’s version when she says, “Oh God my father and mother.” I love that.
SARRATT: Since we’re in Lent, I’m thinking more in those terms right now so I like some of the more reflecting ones like “Abide With Me” or “O Sacred Head Now Wounded.”
Favorite scripture?
SWEARINGEN: “Do not grow weary in doing good for at the proper time, you will reap a harvest if you do not give up.” (Galatians 6:9)
SARRATT: The sermon on the mount, especially the Beatitudes.
Favorite biblical figure?
SWEARINGEN: Ruth and Naomi.
SARRATT: Job. We need to reclaim the fullness of emotion and lament and not just sanitize everything. The older I get, the more I’ve found a deep and profound honesty in those places.
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What ‘Queer Eye for the Straight Guy’ can still teach us
Producer David Collins on lasting impact of hit series
It’s hard to imagine where LGBTQ+ television would be without “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy,” the trailblazing reality series that premiered in 2003.
Each episode of this Emmy-winning show saw a group of gays converge on a struggling man — the titular straight guy — and offer nonstop wit while organizing his endlessly messy life. This program about a group of homosexual helpers took the world by storm, furthering the love of gay television begun by shows like “Will and Grace” but bringing it into the growing medium of reality TV. Of course, it wasn’t perfect; “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy” often cast its experts less as multi-faceted queer folks and more as sources of early 2000s gay jokes. But despite these pitfalls, it’s undeniable that the original program explored the realities of being gay in a way audiences had never seen before. It was a monumental piece of LGBTQ+ representation, and its success is largely owed to the man who fought to get this show made: producer David Collins.
Collins spoke with the Blade from his Los Angeles home, where he’s spent the past few years living with his husband and his two daughters. David spoke fondly of his many years in the industry, detailing how it feels to be such a huge part of LGBTQ+ history. He explained, however, that he didn’t initially set out to alter how queer people were seen on television. “I never went out to make gay television,” said the producer. “I went out to tell great stories.”
“I’m a hillbilly from Ohio, and I thought I was going to be an editor,” David laughed, looking back on his career. “I interned at the Cincinnati Film Office, and I showed up to work my very first day, and the film commissioner was like, ‘Get to the airport right now and pick [someone] up. Don’t talk to them.’ Well, I ended up picking up Jodie Foster.” Collins raved about this car ride that changed his life, with the pair becoming friends and Foster pushing him to become a producer who puts their own media out into the world. Eventually, he did just that, and after learning about the wild new genre that was reality TV, he pitched a series to Bravo: “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.”
“I was obsessed with Esquire magazine, and they had five categories: fashion, grooming, interior design, culture, food, and wine. So I gave them each a gay, and the Fab Five were born!” Collins said, describing how viewers quickly fell in love with the concept and earned the program four seasons and an Emmy for Outstanding Reality Program. He spoke about how proud he felt creating a show that centered real gay people, not characters in a story, remembering, “To stand in the middle of Times Square and look up and see this massive billboard with the original Queer Eye guys…it wasn’t even a dream come true, because it wasn’t a dream I had even fathomed.”
With his series, people were watching actual gay men and learning the realities of a queer culture that had always been portrayed as a danger to society. Collins tearfully recounted hearing about queer people using the show as a way to connect with their family, saying, “What I’m most proud of that’s come out of Queer Eye [are] the conversations that that series has allowed to have people around their kitchen tables with little boys in Ohio like me who were scared to death that they were going to burn in hell because their pastor was telling them that they were a sinner.”
Now, for all of its trailblazing, the program wasn’t wholly positive; the show’s focus on the central ‘straight guy’ meant it rarely delved into the lives of its Fab Five. Collins regretted that lack of depth but understood that earlier audiences weren’t accustomed to such a nuanced look into queerness — that would have to wait for the reboot.
When “Queer Eye” came out in 2018, audiences were introduced to not only a new Fab Five, but a whole new format (that didn’t rely on a straight person). Now, the series would assist queer folks and allies alike, spotlighting these individuals as well as the queer experts helping them improve their lives. The show has been applauded for its amazing makeovers, but where it truly stands out is its representation, offering a look into individuals across the country and the struggles — along with the immense joys — of being queer in America today.
Fans were disappointed to hear that “Queer Eye” would be ending after its 10th season, but David stressed that they wouldn’t have to be sad for long. “What I will say to you is this: hang tight,” he teased. “There’s yet another version of ‘Queer Eye’ to come, and we’re working on that now.” In the meantime, Collins is continuing his work with new shows like the “House of Stassi,” a series centered on “Vanderpump Rules’”prolific waitress. He’s excited about these new projects, but emphasized that his heart will always belong to “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy” and all that it continues to do for viewers 19 years after its finale.
“It’s not about your new outfit or your new couch or your new whatever. It’s about your humanity,” said Collins, speaking about the core lesson he hopes people take away from the Queer Eye franchise. “It’s about seeing yourself. It’s about dignity. It’s about how confidence breeds success.”
A valuable message that queer folks can benefit from even more now than they did in 2003. And, while it’s unclear just what lies ahead for this franchise, one thing is for sure: “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy” helped people everywhere understand the power that exists within our queerness. It’s a truth that has impacted countless pieces of LGBTQ+ television today, and it’s one that Collins promises to keep alive through whatever hit show he creates next.
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Jason DePuy on coping with homophobia in ‘Big Brother’ house
First drag queen contestant on CBS show fought to stay positive
One week after Jason DePuy (known as Salina EsTitties on “RuPaul’s Drag Race”) was bullied and eventually evicted from CBS’s “Big Brother” house, the queer drag performer is still emotionally processing his feelings.
During his 24 days in the reality TV competition, DePuy often had a rough time, with fellow cast member Kamuela “Kamu” Kirk making homophobic comments and feeling isolated.
In a conversation with Head of Household Rick Devens, Kirk left viewers upset when he said, “Bro, miss me with the drag stuff. Miss me. I’m still an MMA guy, and I have an image to uphold.”
Former “Big Brother” contestant Frankie Grande called his words ‘homophobic’ and ‘gross.’ Another comment, where Kirk said he wanted to end DePuy’s career, also received strong backlash online.
Now that he is out of the house, DePuy has been shocked and deeply touched by the love from “Big Brother” fans and former contestants. We chatted with DePuy for this Blade exclusive.
“To know that my community was rallying for me outside the house was the most wonderful thing. Seeing how much people were just wanting to shower me with love was incredible. Even my friends, I went to say hi and give them a hug, and they’re like, ‘Uh, uh, come here.’ They had to hold me and let me know America was feeling for me in a way that I had no idea.”
He added: “To see that reality was just overwhelming, and I couldn’t ask for more.”
Known as a messy player in the house, DePuy often had to fight to stay positive and stand up for himself.
“No one was coming to my rescue. In real life, it’s easy to block people, but in the house, I didn’t have that luxury, so I had to find it within myself to learn how to speak up for myself in a way that wasn’t nasty or biting. I didn’t attack anyone personally, which is what I was the most proud of.”
DePuy acknowledged he has had a history of putting his foot in his mouth when it came to certain “Drag Race”moments, being in the public eye, and making a fool of himself. “I’ve learned my lessons; to see how I handled myself in the ‘Big Brother’ house was amazing.”
While DePuy has been sober for 14 and a half years and has a strong spiritual foundation, in the Big Brother house, he often felt like he couldn’t communicate what he was feeling.
“As a queer person, a person of color, a drag queen, I have to be very careful about how I move. I don’t have the luxury or privilege to just act a certain way or say a certain thing. I have to be very careful; I’m representing me. But who I am is a Latino, a person of recovery, a drag queen, a queer person in the community. I know that there’s a lot of pressure that comes with that. I felt it was safer for me to sit there and just breathe than try to do anything crazy.”
He continued: “I couldn’t speak to the personal attack that was happening in the house, because in my mind I was like, ‘no, this is a game, and I have to play it, put that aside.’”
Not only can viewers watch the episodes, but they can also watch the live feeds of what’s happening. Seeing the fans’ social media posts from people who had watched the episodes and the live feeds also contributed to DePuy realizing that his feelings of discomfort were valid.
“To know that I wasn’t delusional in those moments, that others could see what was happening, has been a lot to take in. Fans and friends let me know the comments made went beyond the game…I’m like, ‘Oh, so my instincts were correct.”
One of the most poignant moments on the live feeds occurred when DePuy was crying, alone in his room, and said how he missed his gay community.
“I really missed my friends. I missed my queer community. We’re so colorful. We’re so loud. We’re so vibrant. We speak off the cuff, and we’re very truthful and honest with how we speak, and it’s fun. We have fun lingo.”
DePuy had to censor his expressions in the house. “Because I can say one thing, but it can mean something different to straight people than it does with my queer brothers and sisters. So, there was a sense of code-switching that I had to do. I had to even put aside some of my queerness in a way sometimes to fit in.”
DePuy was thrilled to be the very first drag queen to ever be cast on the show.
“I’m honored to have been chosen. There’s a million drag queens out there, and to know that I was a contender to come in the house and not even be in drag was like a wow for me. I’m over here in Hollywood, running around these streets with a wig and heels just to make a dollar to survive, and I have to rely on drag to do that. And then to be offered this opportunity and be given the privilege to say, ‘hey, you don’t have to put on the wig for you to be valuable here,’ is just insane to me.”
Prior to his shows, DePuy has been hustling for 15 years, flipping burgers and doing drag at night.
“That has been my life these past since I was 17. So it’s been a long journey; the opportunity to do this out of drag is a very big blessing. I’m honored and grateful to be the representation of my community.”
If you missed Jason on “Big Brother: Unlocked,” the episode can be seen on CBS.com. He will be back on the show for the finale.
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Rainbows in Revolt on a mission to make LGBTQ artists’ voices heard
Rainbows in Revolt on a mission to make LGBTQ artists’ voices heard
Last month’s Pride celebration in D.C. was so fun. Walking around my first Capital Pride with a $15 lemonade I was loving the madness and the color. Artists and small businesses battling banks you’ve never heard of collecting your personal information so you can spin a wheel to snag free merch. Great music blaring, people actually smiling and enjoying themselves, the “Great” American State Fair could never!
The Monument Stage was on Pennsylvania Avenue, directly in front of the National Gallery of Art and I can’t think of a better venue to see live music. How does someone get on the lineup for Pride? How do we accelerate the visibility of the most talented voices in our community to perform in places like this?
There is certainly not a talent gap, but there is a visibility gap. Chappell Roan went from playing for two people in a parking lot to owning the main stage at Coachella in one year. Whether it is shadowbanning or bias in AI, algorithms have been shown to suppress queer artists. In a digital age, how can queer people break through and show the world how talented they are?
Allison and Matt of Rainbows in Revolt are on a mission to make openly LGBTQ+ artists’ voices heard. Their goal is to find “musicians whose queerness is central to their identity as an artist,” and accelerate them to a place where they can actually reach fans.
The only time queer events seem to be in the spotlight is June, but this should be year round, according to Allison and Matt. Rainbows in Revolt wants to act as a “nucleus” for different sub-communities, finding common ground in the universal language of music.
Matt and Allison founded Rainbows as a way to make cheaper, higher quality merchandise for queer artists. While Rainbows has already pledged 20% of their profits to the LGBTQ+ community, with 10% to Whitman-Walker Health and 10% to LGBTQ+ organizations in need, this is just the beginning of the work that they do.
Rainbows “does the dirty work” that artists normally struggle to do on their own with limited resources. Interviews, artist profiles, social promotion, playlist discovery, radio outreach, and merch-funded support. This work is normally expensive, time consuming, and requires lots of different skills. Musicians don’t want to be editing clips to post online. Standup comedians don’t want to make graphics for their tour dates. They want to write more. They want to focus on their craft.
In addition to helping artists find their audience, Rainbows has built other digital tools to help queer people connect, including an interactive Safe Space Map for most major cities. It is hard to know which places are truly safe and supportive just from a simple Google search. Attitudes and actions change, and there should be a simple way for queer people to find other places that align with them. The Safe Spaces Maps are all up to date, and are tagged and filterable. Instead of relying on forums and word of mouth, Rainbows has created a centralized way to find authentic community quickly.
I had a chance to talk with Allison and Matt at Pride where Lily Erin, one of their signature artists, was performing on the Monument stage. Lily Erin is a folk singer who is familiar and forging her own path. Her bittersweet sound echoes through Acadia, and her garb mirrors the New England athletes I grew up with. Gorp Core meets streetwear. A graphic tee, hiking shorts, and creamsicle Jordans.
Her debut single, “Bus Stop,” tells a sad story about unconditional love, and the conditions that still seem to come with it. Graduating into lockdown, Erin needed a new way to connect with herself and others. Lily made “Bus Stop” without an intention to share it, but doing so was a liberation. People have been responding to her honesty around queer-ness, family, and the “ghosts which haunt us” even in the daytime.
Rainbows in Revolt has helped Lily Erin go from bars and backyards to The Monument Stage at Pride. This is a meteoric rise, and a testament to both Erin’s talent and the work of Rainbows to promote her. “A little encouragement goes a long way with early artists,” and by “planting a seed” Rainbows is already seeing their artist garden grow. Community is power, and Erin is a perfect example of how effective simple modern techniques of promotion can be.
A next step for Rainbows is putting on shows themselves. On Oct. 3, Rainbows in Revolt will host an Evening with Ray Boltz at the National City Christian Church. Boltz grew up in the Catholic Church and for many years was the soundtrack to many services, youth camps, and church groups. He was celebrated by millions until he came out in 2008. Allison remembers her community “never playing his music again.”
Rainbows in Revolt is helping him to return to the church, and proving that identity does not need to be exclusive. We live in a complicated world with complicated lines being drawn. Boltz proves that these lines don’t exist, and will be breaking down barriers to bring together communities. To Allison, “a trans woman standing next to a straight white man in church is a powerful teacher.”
The Safe Space maps bridge all types of spaces, and one of the unlikely ones is, perhaps, churches. Matt said that “BYU has only nine safe spaces around their campus and seven of them are churches.” Not all churches are anti-gay, and many times they are the only place for people to find community.
Rainbows in Revolt is just getting started bridging gaps and building community.
Dolly Parton dies at 80
Monument to LGBTQ Canadians officially unveiled
The fight to save one of Baltimore’s last gay bars
When home becomes a journey: migration, memory, and the African diaspora
Gay-owned pizzeria in Dupont Circle burglarized
Trump-Vance administration’s LGBTQ brain drain: what you need to know
UPDATE: Impulse Group’s ‘PrEP Pool Party’ cancelled
Not all trans people are the same
Calendar: August 21-27
