“Christmas is the busiest time for us, especially in areas most affected by drink,” says London Street Pastor Eustace Constance.
While most people want to spend this Christmas toasting the season with their loved ones over carols and turkey, dozens of trained Christian volunteers are donning the distinctive blue Street Pastor jackets and caps and heading out onto Britain’s city streets at night to bring comfort and a listening ear to the lost, hurt and lonely.
“There is always a mixture of feelings about Christmas. The suicide rate goes up. The cold weather makes things difficult. There are homeless people in need. Sometimes it does get hard and it can affect you,” says Eustace.
“But Christmas is our thing. We have to be visible and we want to be that Good Samaritan.”
Eustace has been a Street Pastor since 2003. The initiative was launched in the same year by the Rev Les Isaac to restore the city streets with a positive presence during the most unfriendly of hours. From breaking up fights, to speaking to the homeless, to assisting young revellers who have had too much to drink, Street Pastors are there to help.
“We’re going into the community, into their environment, making ourselves available until 3, 4, sometimes 5am. It’s the last place people expect to see Street Pastors,” says Eustace.
While practical outreach has its rewards, for Eustace, it is the spiritual dimension that makes his work so different from other outreaches.
“The vast majority of people we meet don’t go to church but people have not lost their spirituality,” he enthuses. “Some have passed through church and would like to tell us of their past spiritual journey. Some ask for prayer. One of the pleasures I experience is when I can bring someone before the heavenly throne.”
In the five years since its inception, Street Pastors has spread to 20 boroughs across London and a number of cities across the UK and internationally. In 2009, Street Pastors will launch in even more cities, from Southampton in the south to Stirling in the north.
