The Clearing Online
Sunlight breaking through tall trees into a mossy forest clearing

A digital sanctuary. Carved out for spiritual fugitives. Inspired by the Hush-Harbor.

We gather people who have stepped away from institutional religion without abandoning the sacred. Together, we explore contemplative practice, embodied wisdom, theological reconstruction, pilgrimage, and life-giving forms of community.

Gathering online twice each month. Come as you are.

Welcome

You are not lost. You may be finding another way.

The Clearing Online is a co-curated spiritual formation space for people navigating post-Christian transition, religious injury, spiritual exile, or a longing for community beyond institutional religion.

We are mystical and contemplative, interfaith and intergenerational, queer-affirming, and rooted in Black and womanist spiritual traditions. Nobody here is required to arrive with a settled theology — only with themselves.

Learn More About The Clearing
  • Tethered to tradition, not trapped by it.

  • Formation without domination.

  • Community rooted in rest, truth, pleasure, and liberation.

The rhythm

What happens in the Clearing

Each gathering has a familiar rhythm, but every curator brings their own medicine, wisdom, and way of making space.

  1. 01

    Check-In

    Informal check-in and grounding.

  2. 02

    Center-Down

    Breath, music, ritual, or embodied practice.

  3. 03

    Content

    Teaching, storytelling, or shared wisdom.

  4. 04

    Contemplation

    Contemplation, journaling, or practice. 

  5. 05

    Conversation

    Communal conversation and small-group engagement.

  6. 06

    Cheers Out

    We leave with a blessing for the week and a cheers to one another.

Gather online

Meet us in the Clearing.

[PLACEHOLDER — short description of this gathering]

Next gathering
[PLACEHOLDER — next gathering date]
Time
[PLACEHOLDER — time and time zone]
Theme
[PLACEHOLDER — gathering theme]
Featured curator
[PLACEHOLDER — featured curator]

New here? You do not need to have everything figured out before you arrive.

Send me gathering reminders.

A quiet note before each gathering. Nothing else.

The Clearing Letters

Lessons from the Clearing

Essays, practices, reflections, announcements, and resources for tending a spiritual life beyond inherited boundaries.

Featured letter

The latest post will appear here.

Once the Substack feed is connected, this card fills automatically with the newest essay — image, title, excerpt, and publication date.

Substack URL: [INSERT SUBSTACK URL]

The circle

Meet the Curators

The Clearing is tended by a circle of practitioners, storytellers, teachers, artists, and spiritual companions. Each curator brings a distinct body of wisdom and a local expression of the work.

  • Portrait of Dr. Tamice Spencer-Helms

    Dr. Tamice Spencer-Helms

    they/them · Richmond, VA

    Resident Theologian & Storyteller

    Dr. T brings their years of field research and academic study to help us form the formational arc. Their work on Hush Harbor Praxis is the foundation of the Clearing Online.

    PUBLIC THEOLOGY · THEOLOGICAL DISCUSSION · GUIDED CONTEMPLATION

  • Placeholder artwork in place of a portrait of Naya

    Naya

    [PLACEHOLDER — pronouns] · [PLACEHOLDER — city or region]

    [PLACEHOLDER — professional / spiritual role]

    [PLACEHOLDER — two or three sentence short bio]

    [PLACEHOLDER — areas of practice]

    Visit Website Book a Session 
  • Placeholder artwork in place of a portrait of Sarah

    Sarah

    [PLACEHOLDER — pronouns] · [PLACEHOLDER — city or region]

    [PLACEHOLDER — professional / spiritual role]

    [PLACEHOLDER — two or three sentence short bio]

    [PLACEHOLDER — areas of practice]

    Visit Website Book a Session 
  • Placeholder artwork in place of a portrait of Amber

    Amber

    [PLACEHOLDER — pronouns] · [PLACEHOLDER — city or region]

    [PLACEHOLDER — professional / spiritual role]

    [PLACEHOLDER — two or three sentence short bio]

    [PLACEHOLDER — areas of practice]

    Visit Website Book a Session 
  • Placeholder artwork in place of a portrait of Samantha

    Samantha

    [PLACEHOLDER — pronouns] · [PLACEHOLDER — city or region]

    [PLACEHOLDER — professional / spiritual role]

    [PLACEHOLDER — two or three sentence short bio]

    [PLACEHOLDER — areas of practice]

    Visit Website Book a Session 
  • Placeholder artwork in place of a portrait of Rebecca

    Rebecca

    [PLACEHOLDER — pronouns] · [PLACEHOLDER — city or region]

    [PLACEHOLDER — professional / spiritual role]

    [PLACEHOLDER — two or three sentence short bio]

    [PLACEHOLDER — areas of practice]

    Visit Website Book a Session 
  • Placeholder artwork in place of a portrait of Tommy

    Tommy

    [PLACEHOLDER — pronouns] · [PLACEHOLDER — city or region]

    [PLACEHOLDER — professional / spiritual role]

    [PLACEHOLDER — two or three sentence short bio]

    [PLACEHOLDER — areas of practice]

    Visit Website Book a Session 
A narrow footpath through tall grasses opening toward a distant horizon at dusk

Pilgrimage

Take the journey into your body.

The Clearing Pilgrimage is an embodied learning experience that moves from digital connection into local places, stories, practices, and relationships. It is an invitation to encounter healing, history, community, pleasure, and sacred possibility on the ground.

  • Embodied spiritual practice
  • Local history and storytelling
  • Food and communal tables
  • Rest and reflection
  • Cultural and sacred sites
  • Guided integration

Featured pilgrimage

[PLACEHOLDER — brief description]

Destination
[PLACEHOLDER — destination]
Proposed dates
[PLACEHOLDER — proposed dates]
Duration
[PLACEHOLDER — duration]
Price
Pricing coming soon
Available spaces
[PLACEHOLDER — available spaces]
Application deadline
[PLACEHOLDER — application deadline]

Pilgrimage interest

Give

Help keep the Clearing open.

Your contribution supports accessible online gatherings, curator compensation, community care, production, scholarships, and embodied pilgrimages. Giving helps us create a sustainable sanctuary without reproducing the extractive systems many of us are leaving behind.

We are committed to telling you how community contributions are used. See how your gift supports the work.

Frequency
Amount

Add the donation link in the content file to activate this button: [INSERT DONATION OR PAYMENT LINK]

There is room for you here.

You do not need the right language, the right theology, or a polished spiritual story. Bring your questions, your wisdom, your weariness, your longing, and your whole self.