Bishop Durrell Watkins, D.Min. is the Senior Minister of Sunshine Cathedral in Fort Lauderdale, FL.
Through their ministry outreach which includes worship services onsite, at care facilities, and on Social Media, daily Midday Prayer online, a daily panel discussion show on Happening Out Television Network, feeding those who are at risk of food insecurity, and helping at risk Queer young people find a safe landing space, Sunshine Cathedral reaches millions of people every year with its progressive, affirming message of justice-love.
Durrell holds degrees from Henderson State University, Goddard College, Union Theological Seminary, and the Episcopal Divinity School.
He is the winner of the Hudnut Award for Preaching (UTS), the Maxwell Fellowship for Excellence in Parish Ministry (Auburn Seminary), and the William J. Dietrich Memorial Prize/Urban Mission (EDS).
In 2017 Bishop Durrell was a United Nations Association-Broward Chapter “Global Goals, Local Leaders” honoree. Ordained in 1997, he has been in full-time ministry since 1992, serving in interim pastor, chaplain, assistant pastor, and senior pastor roles.
He has written position papers and press releases for the Global Justice Institute, worked on the ground for LGBTQ affirmation and HIV care in both Jamaica and Cuba, was an advocate for marriage equality in Florida and the U.S., and has spoken at conferences and churches in Jamaica, Cuba, Mexico, Canada, Italy, Austria, Germany, and across the U.S.
Dr. Watkins currently is studying privately with Capital Punishment Abolitionist Rev. Dr. Jeff Hood.
As a writer, Dr. Watkins is a monthly contributor to Outclique Magazine, and also a contributor to the Queer Bible Commentary (2nd edition, SCM Press) and to The Essence of Ministry (VTS), and is the author of The Sacrament of Sharing (Lulu), Saved From Salvation (Lulu), and Wrestling With God Without Getting Pinned (Outskirts Press).
Durrell is an Auxiliary Bishop for the Global Justice Institute, as is his husband, Bishop Robert Griffin, D.Min.
Bishop Durrell is a native of Texarkana, Arkansas and is the oldest of three sibilings.