About the author
The Rev. Sarah TevisTownes (she/her) is the Pastor and Teacher at Church of the Good Shepherd United Church of Christ in Albuquerque NM and on TikTok, Youtube, and Instagram @disorganized.religion. She also appears as a regular guest on The Word in Black and Red podcast and teaches webinars for groups like the ONA Coalition on tech-related topics like social media and Artificial Intelligence. She currently serves on the Decentering Whiteness Committee for the Southwest Conference of the UCC. In the past, she served as the Southwest Conference Moderator and as a member of the Church and Vitality Committee. She also hosts boundary trainings for clergy on the topic of technology.
Path to Ministry
Sarah grew up in the Presbyterian Church USA and participated in the Westminster Presbyterian and UCC Fellowship at Duke University (where she also camped out for basketball games in Krzyzewskiville). Decolonial theory was an integral part of her undergraduate studies, where she majored in Political Science with a focus on International Relations and Spanish with a focus on Latin American Studies. She also spent a semester abroad studying in Spain and another semester working in Washington, DC as a research associate for the Council on Hemispheric Affairs, a think tank that “encourages the formulation of rational and constructive U.S. policies toward Latin America” and “seeks to be a progressive voice against US illegal interventionism in the hemisphere.”
While at Duke, Sarah also met the Rev. Cheryl Barton Henry, a PCUSA pastor, who first encouraged her to consider a call to ministry. Following graduation, Sarah joined the Jesuit Volunteers International, where she worked as a teacher and campus advisor in Micronesia. The rich faith of her Pohnpeian colleagues and the social justice emphasis of Catholic Social Teaching continue to shape her theology.
Still discerning her call to ministry, Sarah returned to the States and served for a year as an Americorps volunteer with Big Brothers Big Sisters in Denver. While attending a class called "Just Faith" in partnership with a local UCC Church and nearby Catholic church, she discerned it was time to say "Yes" and follow God's call to ministry.
Sarah graduated from the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, CA with her MDiv, attended church as a member of Plymouth UCC, the "Jazz and Justice Church," in Oakland, and completed her field education at Lafayette Christian Church.
Social Location
Pastor Sarah is an Anglo woman with Scottish, Irish, and German heritage who was born in a small town near Fort Worth, Texas. When she was 10, her family moved to Tokyo, Japan, where her father worked as a computer programmer for three years. Her time in Japan instilled in her a strong belief in the value of diversity and cross-cultural learning.
Sarah identifies as pansexual and is married with two adult children. She is openly neurodivergent with ADHD and relies on the support of a service dog for her temporal lobe epilepsy.
Journey to Digital Ministry
While she remembers card catalogs and landlines; Sarah was an early adopter of digital media, winning her first digital art competition at the age of 7. Despite her tech-saavy beginnings, Pastor Sarah was late to adopt digital tools in the church. She strongly resisted posting her sermons online, for example.
The 2020 pandemic changed everything. In order to keep members connected and spiritually grounded, Sarah and staff members like Music Minister Linda Gilmour learned programs like Zoom, Acapella and iMovie to facilitate meaningful worship services.
For fun, Sarah even tried out TikTok at the urging of the Church Administrator. The plan was to make some fun videos as a mental health break and practice using programs like iMovie. Her early videos were 15 seconds or less and featured tips about how to work with service dogs. When viewers learned she was a pastor, they begged to learn more. From there, she followed the audience’s curiosity and ventured into the realm of digital ministry.
Recognizing the ravenous appetite for progressive faith content on TikTok, Sarah and 12 colleagues formed the #progressiveclergy squad. They organized on Facebook and Zoom, strategizing, collaborating, and intentionally building community on the platform. Their movement quickly expanded to include clergy from other faiths. Since April of 2020, the group has posted over 55,300 videos and received over 325 million combined views.
Recognizing the value of digital tools for ministry, Pastor Sarah, with the support of the Church Council, continues to build digital infrastructure in order to make church events more accessible and connect the local congregation to the wider Body of Christ.
Outside the Church
Pastor Sarah enjoys hiking, geocaching, rock climbing, spending time with family, and creating art. She is currently learning to crochet, but she also sews, makes leather armor, designs beaded jewelry and tapestries, and even fights with foam swords from time to time. She’s a lifelong learner and enjoys interdisciplinary videos and books on topics ranging from New Mexico history to physics.
Learn more about the Pacific School of Religion
This Doctor of Ministry project was done through the Pacific School of Religion (PSR). PSR offers a large number of classes online, making theological education even more accessible. "Since 1866, PSR has been recognized as an innovative center for progressive Christian scholarship, social change, and leadership development. Part of the Graduate Theological Union (GTU), a Bay Area consortium of the largest theological faculty in North America, PSR is firmly committed to serving the church and nonprofit organizations. PSR welcomes students from all denominations and religious backgrounds. They embrace diversity and are committed to racial, gender, sexual orientation, economic, and social justice."
Visit Church of the Good Shepherd
Church of the Good Shepherd is dedicated to creating safe and brave spaces where people can experience the Divine and participate in the healing of the world. Most events are in-person and online! Join us to learn, grow, and experience faith in action!
Watch Pastor Sarah's latest TikTok videos
Pastor Sarah has over 300 videos on TikTok where she uses humor and dialog to engage topics from theology to biblical interpretation to UCC history and polity to Black history to physics to civic engagement and community organizing. She even has a playlist about service dogs and welcomes interactions with people from all walks of life.
TikTok is best viewed on a mobile device. When opening TikTok, search for "disorganized.religion" or "Pastor Sarah" to find Pastor Sarah's content. To find other videos from progressive people of faith, search the hashtag "#progressiveclergy"
Visit Pastor Sarah on Instagram
Pastor Sarah is relatively new to Instagram - help her find other critical linkers and world-changers there! Her content there includes a mix of comedy, theology, education, and social critique. Decolonial praxis is a thread connecting them all!
Instagram is best viewed on a mobile device. When opening Instagram on a phone or tablet, search for "disorganized.religion" to find Pastor Sarah's content.