Knock on standby for potential Papal Visit

HISTORIC VISIT?  Could Pope Francis visit Knock this year?

Michael Commins

THERE is renewed speculation in recent days that Pope Francis may visit Knock Shrine during his trip to Ireland at the end of August. The Pope is scheduled to preside at the Festival of Families in Croke Park on August 25 and to celebrate Mass in the Phoenix Park the following day.
Dublin is hosting the World Meeting of Families from August 21-26 with several thousand people making the journey to Ireland to join in the celebrations.
This is the first Papal Visit to Ireland since Pope John Paul’s historic trip back in September 1979 when vast crowds flocked to all venues he attended including Dublin, Knock, Galway, Limerick, Clonmacnoise, Drogheda and Maynooth. It was the first ever visit by a Pope to Ireland.
“I have noticed that this Pope has a special affinity with Marian Shrines in any of the countries he has visited to date,” said a local observer of papal history in the parish of Knock yesterday (Monday).
“I would be leaning towards believing that he will visit Knock Shrine and that he may well arrive directly from Rome to Knock Airport. The National Novena ends on August 22 so any visit by the Pope will be in the immediate aftermath of the conclusion of the Novena. I would expect that, if he does come to Knock, it may well be in a private capacity.
“That is unlikely to deter a major crowd converging on the Church and Basilica grounds. A lot of coordination will be needed if word comes through that Pope Francis is indeed on his way to Knock Shrine, the place famously described by Pope John Paul as the ‘goal of my journey to Ireland’ in 1979.
Knock Basilica has undergone major refurbishments in the last three years while another refurbishment of the ‘old’ parish church is nearing completion. It is due to reopen on Friday, May 18.