In the heart of London, on Trafalgar Square, St Martin-in-the-Fields offers a rare stillness amid the city’s noise. It is here that two 30-year-olds, pastoral assistant Maddie Naisbitt and ordinand Jolley Gosnold are discovering what it means to serve God in a context that is both deeply spiritual and relentlessly urban.
Maddie is currently on the one-year pastoral assistant scheme, and Jolley completed it last year.
Discerning the Call
Maddie describes her role as a year-long placement for those discerning a vocation to ordained ministry. A former staff member at St Mellitus College, Maddie was drawn to the programme through clergy she met there. “I remember Richard Carter and then curate Angela Sheard telling me about it,” she recalls. “It sounded cool, and I tucked it away in my mind until it resurfaced last summer.”
Her work now includes daily morning prayer, midweek Eucharists where she sometimes preaches or deacons, and extensive involvement with the International Group—a Sunday gathering for refugees and asylum seekers who are experiencing homelessness. She calls it “one of the heartbeats of St Martin’s.” There is also, she adds with a smile, “a small joy in the admin.”
Jolley, who began the same programme in 2023, has stayed on as an ordinand in training at St Augustine’s College of Theology. “I have a bit more responsibility now,” he explains. “I help lead the International Group, steward the Nazareth Community, and support cultural and educational events like our annual lecture series and retreats.” He preaches regularly and helps lead services such as Evensong and “In Every Corner Sing,” a Monday lunchtime liturgy featuring world choral music, scripture, poetry, and reflection.
Faith Journeys
Maddie was raised in a charismatic evangelical household in the North East of England. A mentorship with a visiting youth worker from Texas helped bring her faith alive at age 15. Later, she moved to Texas herself, experiencing a more conservative Baptist context. It was a challenging season. “There was a lot of certainty in that space, and I found that difficult.”
Her return to England and time at St Mellitus helped reframe her faith through what the college describes as a “generous orthodoxy.”
“Coming to St Martin’s has further solidified the practices I value: contemplation, silence, Lectio Divina. A stiller, more holistic way of life. Learning from older generations has been such a blessing. They’ve walked the road, changed their minds. That’s freedom. That’s the generosity of the gospel.”
Jolley, meanwhile, was not raised in a Christian household but grew up attending a Church of England primary school in rural North Yorkshire. His first spiritual role model was his parish priest, whose playful, joyful faith left a lasting impression. It wasn’t until university, though, that Jolley became a Christian, after his then girlfriend took him along to Hillsong church.
“I was quite anti-faith at the time,” he says. “But I found this huge, vibrant community. It wasn’t the theology that got me, but the kindness. A pastor took time to answer my questions. It felt like I’d found a community that I had been missing in London.”
Over time, though, issues around inclusion and money led him to leave Hillsong and find a smaller parish—St Paul’s, West Hackney. “The first time I attended, I thought: this is the gospel. Forty people from every walk of life, gathered around the table. I was hooked. I realised, I’m an Anglican!”
Reading Richard Carter’s, The City is My Monastery introduced him to the Nazareth Community and its life of prayer and service grounded in the city. When he saw the advert for the pastoral assistant programme, he knew he had to apply.
The Nazareth Community
Founded at St Martin’s by the Revd Richard Carter, the Nazareth Community is a dispersed community shaped by a Rule of Life: silence, service, scripture, sacrament, sharing, sabbath time, and staying with.
“What I love about Richard,” Maddie says, “is that he feels so called to the city, yet he’s so committed to stillness and silence. There’s something special here.”
Jolley wears a cross made from the wreckage of a refugee boat—the same one each Nazareth member receives when they make their vows. “We renew those promises annually,” he explains. “But ‘staying with’ also means staying with your own community, your local parish. It’s about blooming where you’re planted, while being fed by this shared life.”
The community meets weekly for silent hours, Eucharist, and monthly for Sacred Space and Nazareth Sharing—reflections and group Lectio sessions. The community now includes over 150 companions from across the world.
Practices That Sustain
Asked how they stay rooted in God, both Maddie and Jolley speak to the rhythm of prayer and action.
For Jolley, spiritual direction has been transformational. “It changed my prayer life. It used to be me talking at God. Now it’s more about listening. My director introduced me to Ignatian spirituality, which clicked for me as a former theatre director. Praying imaginatively, through story, brought it alive.”
He also finds deep spiritual insight in service. “Contemplation leads to action, but action leads back to contemplation. I see Christ in those seeking asylum, in those the world calls poor. They reflect the fruit of the Spirit daily.”
Maddie finds grounding through journaling. “I’ve kept a journal every year since I was 15. It’s powerful to look back and see how your faith has changed. It keeps a record of the Spirit’s work.”
But it’s not just for reflection. “It fuels the action. Being with those who are homeless or seeking refuge—it’s where Jesus is. One of our guests, Lisa, she talks a lot, but every time I speak to her, it feels like I’m speaking with Jesus.”
She pauses, visibly moved. “Often we think we’re doing something good for others, but it’s us who are blessed.”
On Tuesday mornings, they help host a “spiritual space” for people of any faith to find calm through meditation, reflecting and listening to one another. “Some of what they share is so powerful. We’re not just showing up for others, we’re being changed by it.”
In their ministry at St Martin-in-the-Fields, Maddie and Jolley model what it looks like to be both contemplative and active, rooted and responsive, traditional and open. They embody a vision of faith that makes space for silence, for service, and for the shared journey of a gospel lived in the heart of the city.