Street Pastors to Hand Out Church Invitation

Monday March 4 2019

^{Street Pastors on patrol in Glasgow}

Street Pastors in Scotland are seeking partner churches for a new scheme which will signpost people to local congregations.

The Street Pastors are a familiar sight in Scotland’s towns and cities on Friday and Saturday nights, where they offer practical help and a listening ear to anyone who needs it, from the homeless to people on a night out.

The pastors, trained volunteers from churches of various denominations, report that they often have conversations with people who are interested in exploring the Christian faith.

The new scheme, funded by the three-year partnership with the Church of Scotland Guild which finished last year, will see pastors hand out cards inviting such people to local churches.

They are asking that churches of all denominations display signs on their noticeboards, showing that they support the initiative (the recipients of the cards will be told to look out for churches displaying the sign); and that their welcome teams are aware that someone may approach with one of the cards.

Sandy Scrimgeour, the Chief Executive of Ascension Trust (Scotland) – the umbrella organisation for all Street Pastor groups in Scotland – said: “We are all individuals. The welcome we need is also individual. The welcome we get in church may be too much for us – resulting in a feeling of suffocation – or it may actually be an ‘unwelcome’ – because we sat in ‘someone’s seat’. The aim of this initiative, which is the suggestion of Helen Wynd, a Street Pastor in Stirling, is to overcome this mismatch.”

Interested churches can contact the Ascension Trust on 01738 248143 or admin@ascensiontrust.co.uk

Post Tags: street pastors

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