06/08/2026
The Clearing is a three-day gathering for Black q***r and trans people who carry the deep wound of a world that denies our belovedness. Here, we return to the river that has always healed us—our music, our breath, our way of seeing against the grain and walking against the current. We will draw on the power of Spirituals, Blues, Jazz, Gospel, and Hip Hop—our lament, our gutbucket truth, our improvisation, our embodied hope, our healing rage—to reclaim our stories and free what domination tried to drown. Through song, ritual, dance, silence, and shared tenderness, we lay down the mask, lift up our names, celebrate our bodies, and let our souls be retrieved and re-membered. If you are longing for a place where the hurt is honored and the healing is real, come to The Clearing—where we are called beloved at last.
About the facilitator: Rev. Lynice Pinkard is a Black writer, teacher, healer, pastor, recovering addict, and public intellectual operating at the intersection of Christianity, economics, and social change. Her current work is dedicated to decolonizing the human spirit and freeing people from what she calls “empire affective disorder.” Her commitment is to inspire and nurture a new generation of Spirit-filled servant leaders dedicated to the remediation of day-to-day suffering, the building of collective resilience for transformative change, and the pursuit of structural and systemic justice in the world. Lynice currently serves as the pastor of the United Church of Christ East Goshen in West Chester, Pennsylvania.
Register here: https://kirkridge.org/programs-container/1270/the-clearing-healing-music-retreat/
Scholarships are available!
And if you would like to donate to support this vital healing work, please donate here and put "The Clearing" in the "gift message" field: https://kirkridge.org/give/
