| Before contemplating
the Knock Apparition in detail, and striving to decipher one important
aspect of the message God wanted to convey to us symbolically by means
of it, let us recall briefly the historical facts. |
| Let us quote
an extract from the testimony of Patrick Hill, the first of the fifteen
witnesses to give his deposition before the official Commission which
was set up by the Archbishop of Tuam six weeks after the Apparition. "I
remember the 21st August last - 1879- on that day I was drawing home turf
from the bog, on an ass. While at my aunt's at eight o'clock in the evening,
Dominic Beirne came into the house and cried beautiful vision that are
to be seen there! I followed him; another man by name of Dominic Beirne
(senior) and John Durcan and a small boy John Curry, came with me. |
| We
ran over towards the chapel and when the gable came into view, we
immediately saw the lights; a clear white light covering most of
the gable, from the ground to the window and higher. It was a kind
of changing bright light, going sometimes up high and again not
so high. We saw figures - the Blessed Virgin, St Joseph and St John
and an altar with a lamb on the altar, and a cross behind the lamb.
I went up closer; I saw everything distinctly. |
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The figures
were full and round as if they had a body and life; they said nothing,
but as we approached they seemed to go back a little towards the gable.
I distinctly beheld the Blessed Virgin Mary, life size, standing about
two feet above the ground, clothed in white robes which were fastened
at the neck, her hands were raised to the height of the shoulders, as
if in prayer, with the palms facing one another, but slanting inwards
towards the face.
Her
eyes were turned towards heaven. She wore a brilliant crown on her head,
and over the forehead where the crown fitted the brow. A beautiful rose.
I saw her move, but she did not speak. One old woman went up and embraced
the Virgin's feet, and she found nothing in her arms or hands, they
receded, she said, from her. I saw St Joseph to the Blessed Virgin's
right hand; his head was bent, from the shoulder forward, he appeared
to be paying his respects. I noticed his whiskers, they appeared slightly
grey. His hands were joined like a person in prayer. The third figure
that stood before me was that of St John the Evangelist. He stood erect
at the Gospel side of the altar, and at an angle with the Blesses Virgin
so that his back was not turned to the altar, nor to the Mother of God.
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St John was dressed like a bishop preaching; he wore a small mitre
on his head, and held a Mass book or Book of Gospels in his left
hand: the right hand was raised to the elevation of the head, as
if he were preaching, but I heard no voice. I came so near that
I looked into the book, I saw the lines and the letters. St John
wore no sandals, his left hand was turned toward the altar that
was behind him.
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On the
altar stood a lamb, the size of a lamb eight weeks old, the face of
the lamb was fronting the west, and looking in the direction of the
Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph; behind the land a large cross was placed
erect or perpendicular on the altar. Around the lamb I saw angels hovering
during the whole time, for the space of one hour and a half, or more;
I saw their wings fluttering but I did nor perceive their heads or faces
which were not turned to me.
For
the space of an hour and a half we were under the pouring rain; at this
time I was very wet. I noticed that the rain did not wit the figures".
Not a word was spoken by the heavenly visitants during the whole course
of the apparition, but do not symbols speak louder than words! The Chinese
have a proverb which says "one good picture is worth a thousands words".
In comparison with other Apparitions, it is remarkable how quickly the
testimony of the seers of Knock received Church approval just six weeks
after the apparition of Thursday, 21st August 1879, the Archbishop of
the diocese, Dr. John MacHale, set up a Commission of Enquiry, which
reported that the "testimony of each of the fifteen official witnesses
to the apparition was trustworthy and satisfactory".
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| Again
in 1936 a second Commission was set up by the Archbishop, Dr. Gilmartin,
to examine the three surviving witnesses. All three confirmed their
original statements of 1979. Today Knock Shrine enjoys the full
approval of the church and is recognised by her as one of the leading
Marian Shrines of the world. The Knock Apparition is The Divine
Spotlight on the Paschal Mystery. |
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In the
picture opposite we have an ideal symbolic presentation of the vision
Our Heavenly Father must well have had before his mind from all eternity,
and which he deigned to show to us his children on one occasion unique
in the history of mankind - during the Apparition at Knock.
Here
we see faithfully reproduced in marble statuary all that the 15 seers
gazed upon for two hours at the gable- end of their little parish church
flood-lit with celestial light on that late wet August evening. Obviously
the central figure - the very heart of the Apparition - is the land
of God, slain indeed for our salvation on Calvary but now 'standing'
risen from the dead glorious and immortal on his altar throne in front
of his now victorious cross.
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