Last Updated on April 21, 2024 by Kittredge Cherry
I celebrate the life of my friend and colleague Steve Pieters, gay clergyman, LGBTQ activist and one of the longest-surviving AIDS patients. He died on July 8, 2023 in Los Angeles at age 70. His ground-breaking 1985 interview with televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker helped shift public opinion on AIDS and LGBTQ people from condemnation to compassion. I wrote these personal memories while obituaries and tributes from luminaries flooded the Internet with his dramatic life story.
Pieters was diagnosed in 1982, back when AIDS was still called Gay-Related Immune Disorder (GRID). Doctors predicted he would die before 1985, but Steve lived with HIV/AIDS for more than 40 years. In the end, he died after being hospitalized with an infection after treatment for cancer.
In 1984 he became “patient number 1” on the first anti-viral drug trial for HIV/AIDS in 1984. Two weeks after a near-death experience, he received a life-changing invitation. Televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker wanted to interview him for “Tammy’s House Party” on the PTL Television Network. It was the largest Christian network in the world at the time, with viewers in 13 million U.S. homes plus 40 other countries.
The 1985 broadcast helped change public opinion. It was the first time that a televangelist interviewed a gay man, and one of the first positive media portrayals of a gay man with AIDS. The landmark interview is re-enacted a major event in the 2021 film “The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” starring Jessica Chastain in an Oscar-winning performance as Tammy Faye.
One of his mottos, and the title of his first autobiography, was “I’m Still Dancing.” A new memoir, “Love is Greater Than AIDS: A Memoir of Survival, Healing, and Hope,” was published in April 2024 by Rowman & Littlefield.
Update on April 21, 2024: A documentary film on the life and legacy Steve Pieters is in the works. “God Isn’t Ready for Me Yet” is being produced by the Magician’s Niece, an independent film production company based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. They recently did a documentary miniseries on Tammy Faye Bakker. It was executive produced by Elton John and David Furnish and screened at Sundance in 2024. For more info, visit the film’s Kickstarter campaign.
My ministry memories of Steve Pieters
I can still hear Steve’s voice declaring, “God is greater than AIDS!” To me, Steve Pieters is a saint.
Steve and I had parallel clergy jobs at Metropolitan Community Churches (MCC) headquarters in the 1990s. We shared some similarities, with family roots in elite East-Coast prep schools and the Presbyterian church. Albert Stephen Pieters was born Aug, 2, 1952 and raised in Andover, Massachusetts, where his father taught math to future president George H.W. Bush and others at Phillips Academy.
The MCC delegation to the 1991 World Council of Churches Assembly in Australia included, from left, Nancy Wilson, Kittredge Cherry and Steve Pieters.
But in other ways Steve and I were opposites, reflecting the complexity of human relationships. Steve sang in the Gay Men’s Chorus and has been called “a musical theater queen in the very best sense of the word.” In contrast, I was drawn to the ascetic, contemplative spirituality of Taize chants and Quaker silent worship. He loved the glitzy entertainment world while I came from the serious realms of Watergate-era journalism and lesbian feminist refusal to conform to beauty standards. At his suggestion, we agreed that he could remind me to have a sense of humor by saying, “And Toto too” (quoting Dorothy and Glinda the Good Witch in “The Wizard of Oz.”)
I first encountered Steve Pieters in December 1987 when he gave his now-classic “I do believe in fairies” sermon as a guest preacher at MCC San Francisco, where I was a student clergy. A lot of gay men were dying of AIDS and most of our congregation was HIV-positive. There was no cure or effective treatment, so Steve’s upbeat message and miraculous recovery as a long-term AIDS survivor were incredibly powerful.
“God is greater than AIDS,” Steve assured us. Blending the Bible with Peter Pan, he reclaimed a homophobic slur by describing how “good fairies” were dying. In the Peter Pan story, fairies die when people don’t believe in them. Steve’s prayer was “Have love upon me, a good fairy” (updating the traditional “have mercy upon me, a poor sinner.”) He waved his magic wand and urged us to believe in ourselves, getting us to clap our hands to show that “we do believe in fairies.” That fairy wand is now part of the LGBT collection at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.
Steve Pieters with his fairy wand, circa 1995
Steve was on the faculty when I took the required six-week intensive MCC clergy training retreat, fondly known as “Boot Camp” in 1989. He was ahead of his time, disrupting racial bias by co-facilitating an extremely emotional anti-racism training called “White People Healing Racism.”
I got to know Steve up close and personal as soon as I joined the staff at MCC headquarters in Los Angeles in 1991. My first assignment was to advocate for LGBTQ rights at the World Council of Churches Assembly in Canberra, Australia in 1991. Steve and I were both on the team that was sent to Australia (along with future MCC moderator Nancy Wilson and Sandra Robinson, who passed away just a few months ago in March 2023.)
The air conditioning stopped working shortly after take-off on the memorable 15-hour flight to Australia. The flight attendants tried to keep everybody happy by bringing lots of free alcoholic drinks. I was wedged next to Steve as he entertained us by singing a seemingly endless series of show tunes. It was total immersion in a blitz of Steve’s exuberant show-biz energy.
Steve Pieters, Kittredge Cherry and Nathan Meckley enter Metropolitan Community Church of Los Angeles in a formal procession for the Samaritan College graduation in June 1992. The church building at 5879 Washington Boulevard in Culver City was obviously under construction and always a work in progress.
My title was “field director” of ecumenical witness and ministry, while Steve was “field director” of AIDS ministry. We each edited a monthly newsletter. I was in charge of “Keeping in Touch” (or KIT for short) while he handled “ALERT” (AIDS Legislation Education Research Treatment). Being employed at MCC headquarters was a bit like working at the Vatican, and Steve unveiled some of the mysteries for me by explaining the intricate web of influential figures and their roles in shaping the church. He knew a lot because he had been in MCC since 1975, ministering in Chicago and Hartford before moving to Los Angeles. MCC ministers, especially his chaplain Nancy Radclyffe, were essential caregivers who helped him through the early years after his diagnosis.
Our jobs required a lot of travel, and I sometimes took care of Steve’s cats while he was out of town. I remember how excited he was when he returned from meeting President Bill Clinton at the first AIDS Prayer Breakfast at the White House in 1993. Steve was also the very first person who ever told me about email, urging me to sign up for CompuServe.
Screenshot from Tammy Faye Bakker’s interview with Steve Pieters in 1985.
Steve’s relentless fascination with glamorous female celebrities never ceased to baffle me. One of his biggest claims to fame was his ground-breaking 1985 interview with Tammy Faye Bakker as an out gay clergyman with AIDS, and rightly so. It made a huge impact and is still available as a YouTube video. He often retold the story with genuine admiration for Tammy Faye, extreme make-up, evangelistic style and all.
Steve Pieters and Alison Arngrim, circa 1992
He was an even bigger fan of Alison Arngrim, a former child star who had played nasty bad-girl Nellie Oleson on the 1970s TV show “Little House on the Prairie.” Steve and Alison became friends through AIDS Project Los Angeles. He loved to regale the staff with tales of their shared adventures. Steve even brought her once to an MCC General Conference. Alison outshone us all, making a grand entrance like a Hollywood princess in a stunning ball gown worthy of royalty as Steve escorted her through the crowds of queer clergy. His Facebook feed always included photos of their times together until the end.
Then there was Christie Hefner, chair of Playboy Enterprises and daughter of Playboy founder Hugh Hefner. Steve sang her praises as a champion of sexual freedom and AIDS philanthropist, leading to memorable conflicts with MCC’s lesbian feminist branch. Steve also enthusiastically shared many stories about his high-powered women friends who were intellectual powerhouses, such as his doctor Alexandra Levine and progressive African American journalist/pastor Lucia Chappelle.
His life seemed to come full circle near the end as another dazzling young actress entered the scene: Jessica Chastain. Steve’s interview with Tammy Faye got the complete Hollywood treatment as a major plot point in the 2021 biopic film “The Eyes of Tammy Faye.”
Steve Pieters and Jessica Chastain smile together at the premiere of “The Eyes of Tammy Faye” in his Facebook profile picture from September 2021
Jessica won an Academy Award for starring in the title role. She wore show-stopping gowns while posing with Steve for the paparazzi at the red-carpet premiere and the Oscar nominees luncheon. Steve was played by Randy Havens of the Netflix series “Stranger Things.” Then Elton John made a musical version of “Tammy Faye” with Steve’s character at the heart of it.
Steve Pieters, 2023
Other books that tell his life story include “Surviving AIDS” by Michael Callen, “Voices That Care” by Neal Hitchens and “Don’t Be Afraid Anymore” by MCC founder Troy Perry.
In addition to his high-visibility public roles, Steve counseled MCC clergy with AIDS and other disabilities. When Chronic Fatigue Syndrome forced me to leave my job at MCC headquarters, Steve brought cheer to our house with his pastoral visits. We continued to be friends, worshipping together at Founders MCC in Los Angeles for decades.
Steve stepped up as a donor when I started my LGBTQ spirituality blog at Q Spirit. “I read your fascinating emails every time you send them. So, thank you! You add volumes to my LGBTQIA Pride every time,” he told me in our last online chat. I asked if I could quote him, and he responded graciously, “Of course you can quote me, and please do use my name. If I have any level of name recognition, I’m delighted if it can possibly help you in some small way.”
Thank you, Steve. You have helped me in BIG ways during more than 30 years of friendship and ministry together. Now you are entering the celestial stage. Keep on dancing, good fairy, among the stars and saints in heaven!
The East Coast memorial service for Steve was on Aug. 26, 2023, in the chapel at Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. The West Coast memorial service was held on Sept. 16 in Los Angeles and is available on video.
___
Related links:
The Rev. Steve Pieters, who changed minds about AIDS, dies at 70 (religionnews.com)
The Rev. Stephen Pieters, who helped shift views on AIDS, dies at 70 (Washington Post)
Metropolitan Community Churches Remembers Rev. Steve Pieters
“Spiritual Strength for Survival: Finding Hope to Be Fully Alive With HIV/AIDS” by Steve Pieters, 1988
ALERT (AIDS Legislation Education Research Treatment) Newsletter edited by Steve Pieters, 1987-94
Steve Pieters oral history at Outwords Archive
___
Top image credit:
Steve Pieters and Kittredge Cherry on Easter 2018 at Founders Metropolitan Community Church in Los Angeles. Photo by Mark Hahn.
___
This article was originally published on Q Spirit on July 12, 2023, was expanded with new material over time, and was most recently updated on April 21, 2024.
This post is part of the LGBTQ Saints series by Kittredge Cherry. Traditional and alternative saints, people in the Bible, LGBT and queer martyrs, authors, theologians, religious leaders, artists, deities and other figures of special interest to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people and our allies are covered.
Copyright © Kittredge Cherry. All rights reserved.
Qspirit.net presents the Jesus in Love Blog on LGBTQ spirituality.
What a beautiful tribute to a beautiful man. Rev. Pieters accepted the call to minister to the MCC congregation in Hartford Ct. in 1979 and worked here until he left for LA. He was the second pastor at the church. In Hartford he served on the board of directors of the Hill Center INC and Center City Churches and on the Executive Committee of the Sexual Minorities Task Force of the Capital Region Conference of Churches. The Gay Switchboard for the region was kept in his home and he was interviewed in print media as well as on many TV and radio shows as one of the local gay activists. I had not yet arrived in Hartford but some of the early gay rights activists in MCC here in Hartford remember Rev. Pieters fondly and he is certainly written about in OurStories from the area.