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The people of the village were all doing their daily jobs. Patrick Hill, with his friends John Durkan and Dominic Beirne Senior were heading off to the bog. Judith Campbell had just hung out the washing. The postman had stopped to chat at the Beirne cottage.

Outside, two young cousins, Johnny Curry and Catherine Murray, stood listening to their grandmother. In an instant the two children were off, running barefoot through the grass in search of some ripe blackberries growing in the hedgerows. Elsewhere, Mary McLaughlin went out to visit her close friend Margaret Beirne, who was living near the old grey church in the village. An old man, Patrick Walsh, sat by the half door of his cottage, smoking his pipe. He talked to the neighbours as they passed by.

Before dark, they would experience something mysterious that would change their lives and the village of Knock forever.

Mary Beirne noticed a strange bright, white light as she passed the gable wall of the parish church. At that time, there happened to be fifteen villagers there, who witnessed this strange event. “It was brilliant white,” they said afterwards, “and it lit the whole gable of the church from top to bottom”. Soon, they saw three figures standing in the light: a young woman and two men. The three of them looked kind and peaceful. The weather turned very cold and wet but the people continued to gaze at this beautiful vision.

The beautiful young woman wore a long flowing white cloak fastened at the neck and there was a pretty golden rose in the middle of the crown on her head.

Johnny and Catherine were curious to know who these figures were. “Do you see the lady?” Mary Beirne said, “well, that is Our Lady, and the old man is Joseph, her husband. It took the adults a little while to agree on the identity of the third figure. On his head, he wore what looked like a bishop’s mitre and he held a book in his left hand. Eventually, they agreed it must be St John, the Apostle.

Behind the three figures there was an altar surrounded by angels. On the altar, there was a cross and a lamb. The adults explained to the children that the lamb represented Jesus, the Lamb of God. The rain continued to pour down, but many stayed on, praying the Rosary, for almost three hours, while the apparition lasted. Later, the witnesses reported that the ground below the figures remained completely dry during the apparition, in spite of the heavy downpours.

There were fifteen official witnesses to the apparition, most of whom were from the village of Knock and surrounding areas and ranged from the ages of 5 to 74. Each of the witnesses gave testimonies to a Commission of Enquiry in October 1879. The findings of the Commission were that the testimonies were both trustworthy and satisfactory.

Here is a combined account from those witnesses.

“The entire back wall of the church was bathed in a brilliant light, which could be seen from quite a distance away. Everything was raised about two feet off the ground. There was an altar, on top of which stood a Lamb with a Cross. The altar and Lamb were surrounded by Angels, hovering above. Around them were golden stars or small brilliant lights, glittering like glass balls.”

“To the left of the altar were the three figures: St Joseph on the left, Our Lady in the middle, and St John the Evangelist on the right. St Joseph’s hair and beard were grey and he leaned in a respectful manner toward Mary. St John was dressed in Mass vestments with a bishop’s mitre on his head, a book in his left hand, and his right hand raised in blessing. Our Lady was life-sized; the other two were smaller.”

“The Virgin’s eyes were raised toward heaven with hands outstretched. Mary was beautiful. She wore a white gown and sash. A veil flowed from the back of her head to her feet. On top of her head was a gold crown. Between the crown and the edge of the veil was a gold rose. Mary was almost iridescent.”

Archdeacon Cavanagh was the parish priest of Knock at the time of the apparition until his death in 1897.

He was known to practise special devotions to Our Lady and he worked hard to serve the ever-growing number of pilgrims. Some months before the apparition, Archdeacon Cavanagh made known to his parishioners his plan to say one hundred Masses for the souls in purgatory which Our Lady wished to be released. These Masses were completed shortly before the apparition.

The apparition of Knock is a powerful message of hope for all Christians. It invites us to reflect on the importance of the Eucharist, on living the message of the Gospel and on raising our eyes towards heaven in humble and confident prayer.

Our Lady of Knock continues to give hope and healing to many pilgrims.

Pope  Saint John Paul II visited for the centenary in 1979, becoming the first Pope to visit the island of Ireland. Mother Teresa visited in 1993 and in 2018 Pope Francis visited the shrine as part of the World Meeting of Families which was held in Dublin. It is estimated each year that up to one million people visit Knock Shrine.

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Prayer to Our Lady of Knock
Our Lady of Knock, Queen of Ireland,
you gave hope to your people in a time of distress
and comforted them in sorrow.
You have inspired countless pilgrims to pray
with confidence to your divine Son,
remembering His promise,
“Ask and you shall receive,
seek and you shall find”.
Help me to remember that we are all pilgrims on the road to Heaven.
Fill me with love and concern for my brothers and sisters in Christ,
especially those who live with me.
Comfort me when I am sick, lonely or depressed.
Teach me how to take part ever more reverently in the Holy Mass.
Give me a greater love of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.
Pray for me now and at the end of my death.
Amen.