Ministry Spotlight: Prayer Shawls
Four of the Prayer Shawl Ministry’s original members.
Over the centuries, shawls have come to symbolize shelter, peace, and spiritual sustenance. Today, knitters and crocheters of all faiths are creating handmade shawls for people in need as gifts of comfort, hope, and peace.
Cecelia Raischel was volunteering at Christ the King Parish for their Prayer Shawl Ministry when she was asked if she would consider starting this ministry at Sacred Heart. Cecilia was happy to accept the opportunity. She glows when talking about her ministry, which she started in 2015.
Seven people of all ages joined the Prayer Shawl Ministry when Cecilia started it. And today, there are six members. Their meetings are opened with a prayer and then they begin working on their prayer shawls. The members bring their projects with them to the meetings when they gather at Culemans Hall. They meet on the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month from 9:15 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Attendance at the meetings is not mandatory in order to donate a prayer shawl.
The prayer shawls are made for people who have illnesses, anniversaries, birthdays past 60 years of age, or have lost a loved one. Anyone can receive a prayer shawl. You do not have to be a parish member. Cecilia recently started making lap robes for veterans. She says that we don’t do much for our veterans, and she wanted to start giving to expand the reach of the ministry.
The members receive many donations and rarely have to buy their own yarn. They receive so much comfort in knitting the prayer shawls.
When the prayer shawls are finished, they are blessed by either Fr. Mark or Fr. Matthew. A prayer card and washing instructions are included with the prayer shawls and Cecilia delivers them directly to the person in need.
Cecilia keeps a record of every prayer shawl and who receives it and for what reason. She receives many thank you cards from people expressing their feelings when they put on the prayer shawl.
Cecilia would like people to call her if they are in need of a prayer shawl. She can be reached at (309) 716-2488. She is also looking for new members! While it is helpful if they know how to knit or crochet, the ministry’s members are happy to teach newcomers.
Their next gathering is on January 10, at Culemans Fellowship Hall, and Cecilia welcomes anyone interested to join.