KNITTING INTO THE MYSTERY: A GUIDE TO THE SHAWL-KNITTING MINISTRY, by Susan S. Jorgensen and Susan S. Izard, Morehouse Publishing, 2003, 160 pages, $17.95.

Like most knitters, Susan Izard and Susan Jorgensen, authors of “Knitting into the Mystery: A Guide to the Shawl-Knitting Ministry,” have long known that their quiet craft is practical – knit and you shall be warmed. They also know that knitting is deeply spiritual – knit and you shall meditate, and you also shall warm others. That is the basic premise of the shawl-knitting ministry movement, whose mission it is to knit shawls for those who are facing life crises or celebrating a joyous life passage.

Susan Jorgensen, a spiritual director in private practice, is a Catholic laywoman. Susan Izard is an ordained minister of the United Church of Christ. Both live in Connecticut.

The shawl-knitting ministry began in 1998 when Vicky Galo wanted to knit something for a friend who was going through a painful divorce. At a meditation meeting, Janet Bristow, who helped Galo embellish the shawl with beads, suggested that they bless the shawl. The women in the group offered silent prayers and blessings. Later, the shawl was given to its intended recipient, who was deeply touched by the gesture.

And from that simple process – knitting, praying, blessing, bestowing – the shawl-knitting idea seeped out and began to grow.

Izard became involved in the movement in 2000 when she began a shawl-knitting group at her church. It became a way of praying and caused her to reflect on ministry and to question what ministry is. She asked herself if it was possible that God was calling her to “simple caring rather than complex theological issues.” That summer she wrote a biblical reflection on the shawl-knitting ministry using as her text Psalm 139: 13-14: “You created my inmost self, knit me together in my mother’s womb.”

After the article was published in a theological journal, she began to hear from other women around the world who wanted to know more about the shawl-knitting ministry. They asked for guidance in starting their own shawl-knitting groups, which prompted Izard and Jorgensen to write “Knitting into the Mystery.”

The book covers everything a group needs to know to participate in the ministry, including basic instructions for a shawl – done in K3, P3, a pattern of threes, which, the authors say, is found in every religion and society. They cite the three stages of life – birth, life, death; the three divisions of time – past, present and future; the three most frequently mentioned virtues – faith, hope and charity; the three parts of a human being – mind, body and spirit.

Other chapters discuss knitting as contemplation, the ritual of giving away a shawl and a collection of prayers for every season of life. The book includes prayers and blessings from the Jewish, Hindu, American Indian and Celtic faith traditions.

In the Introduction, the authors quote Isaiah 43:39: “Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?” Read “Knitting into the Mystery” and you will.

Ardeana Hamlin can be reached at 990-8153, or e-mail ahamlin@bangordailynews.net.