Mary, Our Lady of Knock

Our Lady of Knock “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a ​ lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth” (Isaiah 53:7) ​ The Emerald Isle has always held a special appeal for me. Just after my Ordination, I was finally able to visit the land of my ancestors. As we drove through the countryside making our way from Dublin to Galway, we passed through picturesque villages filled with friendly faces. Ah, but the best part of our journey lay ahead: our drive north along the seacoast to the little village of Knock. As we approached the Shrine of our Lady, my thoughts drifted back to those who had left the shores of Ireland little more than a century earlier in the wake of terrible famine and poverty. They sailed to America to begin anew in a land of hope and promise. Would they ever return to their loved ones left behind? In spite of the tremendous hardships their faith was not diminished; on the contrary, it grew more deeply rooted. Indeed, they carried it to America. Various parishes in Bridgeport Diocese were founded by these faithful immigrants in 1854. Just as they had endured religious persecution at home, so too were they greeted with it here in Connecticut. It didn’t stop them. The Catholic Faith in Ireland persevered through unrelenting persecution, yet yielded enormous fruits and graces. The ‘Golden Age’ of Ireland, as it is known, produced great scholarship from the time of Saint Patrick through the 8th century. And ​ while invasions, persecution and famine became characteristic of the Irish experience, these hardships served to deepen their faith. In 1536, the ‘self-proclaimed’ head of the Church in England, King Henry VIII, sought to stamp out the Catholic Church in Ireland. The English persecution persisted even after the Catholic Emancipation Act was instituted some 300 years later in 1828. Henry VIII attacked the Monasteries which were the very heart of Ireland. These spiritual communities were also the center of Irish culture and provided various services that sustained entire villages. Henry tried to crush the spirit of the Irish by dismantling the Monasteries. Religious statues, paintings, and icons were destroyed and fidelity to the Pope was forbidden. Brutal martyrdom, kidnapping for slave labor, and general persecution persisted for three centuries. And yet, these terrible persecutions could not suppress the hearts and minds of the faithful. It seemed to buoy their resolve. They suffered devastating famines in the 1840’s and again in the 1870’s: over a million dead, over a million fled her shores. It was on the heels of this terrible suffering, on a rainy summer evening, August 21, 1879, that the faithful Irish received a great grace. Fifteen villagers were blessed to witness an extraordinary apparition lasting two hours. Only fifty years earlier, the villagers of the poor farming community of Knock constructed their Parish Church (a year before the Catholic Emancipation Act was passed in 1829) and they chose Saint John the Baptist as their patron. Like the Baptist, they too were out in the wilderness, searching for the Lamb. Centuries earlier, the Baptist pointed to Jesus: “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”(John 1:29). ​ ​ Persecution did not diminish the gaze of the Irish. Throughout the centuries, they remained faithful to the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and their devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Remember, the Church distinguishes between two types of Revelation. As Catholics, we’re obligated to believe Divine Revelation; that is, Sacred Tradition and ​ ​ Sacred Scripture. “The obedience of faith" (Rom. 13:26; see 1:5; 2 Cor 10:5-6) "is to be ​ given to God who reveals, an obedience by which man commits his whole self freely to God, offering the full submission of intellect and will to God who reveals," and freely assenting to the truth revealed by Him. To make this act of faith, the grace of God and the interior help of the Holy Spirit must precede and assist, moving the heart and turning it to God, opening the eyes of the mind and giving "joy and ease to everyone in assenting to the truth and believing it. To bring about an ever deeper understanding of revelation the same Holy Spirit constantly brings faith to completion by His gifts”(Dei Verbum 5, ​ Vatican II). When the last Apostle died, John the Evangelist, nothing new could be added to Divine Revelation. At the same time, the Church accepts “Private Revelation” under ​ ​ certain conditions. While we are under no obligation to accept “Private Revelation” it would be prudent to give it due consideration when, and only when, the Church has conducted a thorough investigation and approves it. Private Revelation includes the Apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary at Guadalupe, Lourdes and Fatima, as well as the mystical experiences of the Saints, such as Margaret Mary Alacoque, Faustina, Padre Pio and many others. The Apparition at Knock would likewise be considered Private Revelation approved by the Church for the good of all the faithful. Indeed, four Popes have visited the Shrine, including Pope John Paul II on September 30, 1979 and more recently, Pope Francis. In the various apparitions of our Blessed Mother, it seems that Mary chooses to appear to the simple, humble, and very often the marginalized: Juan Diego at Guadalupe, Bernadette at Lourdes, and the children at Fatima and LaSalette. The same was true on that summer evening at Knock. And what did they see in that silent apparition? Just behind the Church, the witnesses tell us that the apparition hovered about 2 feet off the ground. The Blessed Virgin Mary was standing beside an Altar, and upon it stood a Lamb. Behind the Altar, a Cross. St. Joseph stood beside the Blessed Mother with his head bowed slightly and St. John the Evangelist stood next to him holding open the Bible. Angels surrounded the Altar. Although it was raining, the apparition did not get wet, nor was the ground beneath the apparition wet. While no words were spoken, the scene spoke volumes. Just as our Lady and the Beloved Disciple were present at the foot of the Cross at Calvary, so too are they beside the Altar at Holy Mass where the Innocent Lamb pours out His Blood for us. The Book of Revelation, written by St. John, speaks ​ ​ about the “Wedding Feast of the Lamb” – the Mass. John writes, “Worthy is the Lamb ​ who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!”(Revelation 5:12). ​ The apparition buoyed the suffering hearts of the Irish who had maintained their fidelity to the Church. People from all of Ireland flocked to Knock. “On May 9, 1943, at ​ Knock, [the Most Reverend Dr. Walsh] consecrated the Diocese of Tuam to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. It was the first diocese in Ireland so consecrated. In 1947 he authorized the Knock Rosary Crusade, the purpose of which is to encourage people to say the Rosary every day….Furthermore, in answer to the Archbishops petition, the Chapter of Canons of the Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome made the church at Knock an affiliated church of the Basilica of St. Mary Major, with the effect that the church at Knock enjoys certain special facilities for Indulgences which are enjoyed by the Basilica of St. Mary Major”(The Apparition at Knock, 2008, Msgr. Michael Walsh, p.134). “On ​ ​ ​ ​ the Feast of All Saints (November 1, 1954), Knock Shrine came before the notice of the whole Catholic world. On that day, the Holy Father, Pope Pius XII, solemnly crowned the picture of Our Lady – ‘Salus Populi Romani’ – in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. Over ​ ​ 400 Marian Shrines in various parts of the world were represented at the ceremony. Knock Shrine was represented by a delegation headed by the Archbishop of Tuam. The banners of twenty Shrines were presented to the Holy Father in St. Peter’s, and each received from his hand a gold commemorative medal. The Knock Shrine banner was one of the twenty thus specially honored….The Archbishop had obtained permission from the Vatican Chapter for the Coronation of the Statue of Our Lady of Knock on December 8 according to the ceremonial used by the Holy Father when crowning the picture, ‘Salus ​ Populi Romani’(Ibid., p.137).” ​ ​ The “Knock Novena” may be prayed anytime. It is especially joyful to pray it leading up to the Feast of Our Lady of Knock celebrated on the anniversary of the apparition on August 21st each year. Why do people around the world journey to the West ​ of Ireland to visit the Shrine? The Very Reverend Paul Waldron pointed to the spiritual fruits: “Knock is a shrine of prayer and a school of suffering. It is Mary’s own hospital ​ for her afflicted children. Here they come in their thousands, year after year to speak with Our Blessed Mother in consoling, intimate prayer, and to lay before her their poor bruised hearts and aching bodies. Some may be given the joy of health restored, but all are assured of a still greater blessing. They leave with the grace of a new understanding of their life and of the place that the Cross has in making them like their suffering Saviour. They leave, formed after Mary’s own Immaculate Heart….Here you have a ​ ​ Shrine that has been built not with material stones, but with gems far more precious, the millions of Rosaries that loving hearts and worn fingers have laid all these years at the feet of Our Lady of Knock”(Ibid., p.139). ​ How wonderful it is that today the Knock Novena is prayed between the Feasts ​ celebrating the final two Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary, the Assumption and the ​ Coronation of Mary as Queen of Heaven and Earth. While we may not be able to travel to the Emerald Isle to visit our Lady of Knock, we can rest assure that by entering into the Novena, She will visit us.