When summer turns to fall and we pull out sweaters and wraps, we find soft comfort in clothing that keeps us warm.
Add a little love and a lot of prayers woven into a hand-knitted shawl and you capture the compassion and sacred spirit of the new “Loving Stitches Prayer Shawl Ministry” at .
“When we are sick or discouraged, we know what it feels like to have the arm of someone around us. It makes a difference,” said Bridget Wheatley, who started the Prayer Shawl Ministry at St. Ann Parish in Bethany Beach after being part of one at her former parish, Saints Peter and Paul, in Easton, Maryland.
Almost immediately, 25 women joined the group of knitters and crocheters. About a dozen women show up every week to pray and knit together. They love working, praying, conversing and sharing a camaraderie and creative energy that exists in the group.
“It makes me feel so good assisting in someone else’s need,” said Pat Sherman. “You can see the fruits of your work, your accomplishment.”
“Especially when people are battling illness and become weary, they are searching for comfort in different ways,” said Joy Beatty-Bannister, who co-leads the ministry.
“You never know the sense of peace we’re providing. We all need prayers,” said Beatty-Bannister.
When we are sick or deeply worried, comfort comes in many forms.
“We want people to feel not just our arms, but God’s arms around them on their journey. And, we want them to know we are continually praying for them,” said Wheatley.
Recently, the ministry was asked to provide a prayer shawl to a gentleman in hospice care. They scurried and were able to get a shawl to comfort him. He died hours after receiving it.
Maryann Johnson, a retired teacher, tells the story of how she provided a shawl to a teacher’s mother who, in turn, gave it to her daughter, who is now creatively using it for her students as a comforting wrap during a little modified time-out — in a prayer chair in her classroom. The teacher even uses it herself for difficult days.
“We may never know the full extent of a shawl’s use or meaning for everyone,” but recipients all get our love and prayers,” said Wheatley.
“Oh, it feels so good. The shawl and the prayers that I need. Wonderful, simply wonderful,” exclaimed Ann Tansey upon receipt of her shawl. Tansey, who has been a long-time parishioner of St. Ann, is now recovering from a fall in a rehabilitation facility.
Sharon Johnson, another parishioner who suffers from Parkinson’s Disease, said, “My Homebound Eucharistic Minister surprised me with the lovely, blessed crocheted shawl and I appreciated not only the shawl, but the prayer card and prayers included with it.”
No two shawls are alike.
“I assure you my shawl will get a lot of use, especially as the cooler weather approaches. It’s a beautiful piece of craftsmanship and beyond that, it is beautiful in the thoughtfulness that underlies its creation,” said Bob Aberbach, who also receives Communion at home. “When I use my shawl, I will pray for the artist who designed and crafted an exceptional one-of-a-kind piece of art. May God bless everyone involved in this holy and spiritual ministry.”
The shawls are regularly blessed by the priests of St. Ann and prayed over by the entire congregation at Daily Mass every second Tuesday of the month.
To many, the blessed shawls represent a one-of-a-kind security blanket of spiritual support and divine protection, knowing that gentle, loving prayers woven are into every handcrafted stich.
For more information about the Loving Stitches Prayer Shawl Ministry, contact Bridget Wheatley at bridgetwheatleyrn@gmail.com.
Photos by Cathy Rossi.
