The apparition of Our Lady of Knock occurred during the vigil of the octave on the Feast of the Assumption on August 21, 1879. The individuals who saw Our Lady appear were witnesses that covered a wide range of ages, the youngest was five years old and the elder of the group was seventy-five years old.

The apparition began in the early evening when it was still light. As the two-hour apparition continued, the weather changed rapidly and brought torrential rain. However, the area around the apparition was not affected by the heavy rain, the ground was completely dry. Our Lady did not speak to the individuals, but the gable of the church was donned with a cloud of light.

The witnesses explained the apparition in the following ways: Our Lady appeared wearing a large crown and clothing that shined brightly. They described her as being incredibly beautiful. Our Lady appeared praying with her palms facing inward and eyes looking upward towards Heaven.

She was flanked by Saint Joseph on her right and Saint John the Evangelist on her left. To the left of Saint John was an altar that had a cross and lamb on top of it with angels attending to the lamb. Saint Joseph stood respectfully bowing his head to Our Lady. Saint John wore a Bishop’s miter. He was holding the Book of the Gospels and it appeared that he was preaching but never turned his back to Our Lady.

Since the apparition occurred in Knock, thousands of faithful pilgrims from across the globe have descended upon the site. It is a holy site where many people kneel in humility. The Rosary is the primary prayer said in Knock. For this reason, the shrine is called the Rosary Shrine. Countless cures and miraculous healings have occurred at the site over the years. To learn more about the shrine at Knock, I would encourage you to check out the website here.

Our Lady of Knock is the National Marian Shrine in Ireland. This post is part of a series that I started months focusing on the National Marian Shrines in countries across the globe. In the hopes of finishing it, I will focus my “Mondays with Mary” series for the foreseeable future on these shrines, however, some expectations could be made.

Our Lady of Knock…Pray for Us

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