“There are very few places you can go where people can just be and where people can be listened to, especially street people,” said Kinghorn, who in his diaconate regularly strolls through a troubled downtown area wearing a clerical collar and being available to people on the street.

Kinghorn discussed the idea of opening some kind of non-denominational centre with da Silva, a friend in ministry who works as a community chaplain with women coming out of prison. Da Silva immediately jumped in with stories of The Listening Post in Vancouver, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year and is run by run by a religious sister and lay spiritual director. She had also been thinking that Toronto needed a similar centre.

“There was such a need for just a safe place where the spirit can be nurtured intentionally,” said da Silva, who found some of the women coming out of prison had spiritual depth, but felt uncomfortable walking into a church.

The Listening Post, while created with their street friends in mind, isn’t limited to a certain crowd, said Kinghorn. Even somebody coming home from a stressful day at work is more than welcome to stop by, share their story and maybe even find some time to pray before heading home.

Since they began setting up in December, cushions and mats now dot the floor, a small table and two chairs provide a listening area in the corner. A fireplace and armchairs provide a welcoming, living room atmosphere.

But while The Listening Post in Vancouver occupies a storefront in the troubled east end across the street from a corner known for its drug sales, Toronto’s centre is located a 10-minute subway ride from many of the downtown dwellers Kinghorn and da Silva hope to reach. The trouble is the steep rent of many buildings in the downtown core, Kinghorn said.

At least here, at 740 Broadview Ave., the prayerful atmosphere is drawing visitors from the 12-step meetings of the Alano Broadview Club upstairs, to the delight of their executive director, who wished to remain anonymous.

“The 12-step of course, in a way, is faith-based in the sense that we all have a higher power and we try to develop a living, acting relationship with our higher power. Prayer and meditation are two key ways of doing that and that’s what downstairs is about,” the director said. “It’s a beautiful space, it’s a sacred space and it reinforces what we’re doing,”

In Alaska, The Listening Post opened last year occupies space at a bus station. That sort of arrangement would be ideal in Toronto, da Silva said, especially since most people coming out of prison end up there first. But for now, they are “filling the silence with prayer” on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 1-5 p.m. They are also enjoying the unexpected role they play for those coming and going upstairs.

“Just as we’re listening to others, we’re trying to be attentive to what God wants us to do,” said Kinghorn.

To expand its hours, Kinghorn said they would like to find other people trained in spiritual direction to volunteer their time.