The meaning of Knock - Donal Flanagan

This volume contains various essays discussing the Marian shrine at Knock, County Mayo, in the West of Ireland. Approximately one-and-a-half-million people each year visit the site. They include people of all ages and social groups.;The book seeks to answer: why they come to Knock; what can Knock offer that other places cannot; and what is the meaning of Knock in the modern age.;Tom Neary outlines the history of Knock from the time of the Marian apparition in 1879 until the present day. Donal Flanagan considers the meaning of the apparition itself, how it was and is interpreted, and where it fits into the faith-story of the Irish people. Christopher O'Donnell considers Knock in the context of the piety of the ordinary people throughout the Universal Church. Michael Drumm looks at the Knock experience within the tradition of pilgrimage, an expression of human searching which has its roots way back in the pre-Christian era.;Angela Forde, who runs the counselling service at Knock, talks about healing, in its broadest sense, as a central theme in the Knock pilgrimage. Finally, the Archbishop of Tuam, Dr Michael Neary reflects on the pilgrimage as an expression of a vital aspect of life itself, life as a pilgrimage in mystery.