A Blessing for the Beloved

by Shana Green

As a Black, queer, gender-expansive pastor within Mennonite Church USA, I carry both the weight and the wonder of holding sacred space for those who have been pushed to the margins. I move through the world carrying the stories of so many people. The grief and the glory, the sacred rage and the quiet resilience. I know what it is to live at the intersection of identities that are often misunderstood or erased, and I’ve come to know that the work of ministry is, at its core, the work of making room. My faith is shaped by the radical tenderness of chosen family, by the holiness of Blackness, queerness, neurodivergence, and every “too much” that the world has tried to dim.

Care, for me, is not a performance or a one-time act, it is a practice. A way of being. Something we nurture in community, over time, with intention and love. That is why I am so thankful for the invitation to offer monthly reflections here: as a way of speaking life into our stories, of honoring the brilliance and the belovedness of queer and trans folks in our communities, and of helping to grow cultures of care where we are not only included, but cherished.

As part of that commitment, I offer this blessing for all of us who are navigating faith and identity, healing and hope:

May you know,

in the marrow of your bones,

that you are holy,

not in spite of who you are,

but because of it.

May the lies of unworthiness unravel at your feet,

and may love, real, fierce, unshakable love,

rise to meet you.

May you be surrounded by those who honor your existence,

who see your light and call it good.

May every space that seeks to erase you,

be undone by the truth of your presence.

To those who have been cast out,

may you find a home that holds all of you.

To those who have been silenced,

may your voice ring out with power and joy.

To those who have been told you are too much, too bold, too different,

may you know that you were never meant to be small.

May justice be more than a prayer on our lips but a fire in our hands,

building a world where you do not have to beg to belong.

May rest come easy,

knowing that the Divine delights in you,

exactly as you are.

And may love, abundant, defiant, and ever-expanding,

find you wherever you go,

until every place is a place where you are free.

May this be one of many blessings we speak into existence until every beloved queer soul knows they are held, seen, and deeply loved–just as they are.