The central figure in the Knock Apparition is Jesus as the Sacrificial Lamb, whose sacrifice takes away the sins of the world.

In the apparition the figures were all figures of different intensity of light, the brightest being the   Lamb of God.

This is Divine Mercy brought to Knock by His Heavenly Mother Mary, in answer to a plea for God’s mercy by the holy parish priest in Knock at that time Archdeacon Cavanagh, who was so worried for the thousands who died in the Famine that could not get the Last Rites, and might not be reconciled with God before they died, that he offered up to God, one hundred masses which is the same as Jesus Sacrifice on the Cross, in atonement for the salvation of the souls of the thousands of Famine victims.  

In the apparition, Celebrating the mass at this extraordinary apparition altar was Saint John the Evangelist who was dressed in Eastern Orthodox vestments and was not there as a Roman Catholic priest and so represented the Universal Church, celebrating the Mass which is the Sacrificial Lamb on the Eucharistic altar at every Mass throughout the world, and like all priests, was privileged to be able to offer up the Sacrifice every day of his life for humankind, but shoulder the heavy burden of having to sacrifice his own life to Jesus and His Church in return.  Beside St. John in the apparition to reinforce this Universal image, was Saint Joseph, who is recognized as the Patron and Protector of the Universal Church.

This universality of this apparition is important as it has a message for all nations, as is prophesied on the plaque on the side wall of the original chapel, built on a hill, which is Cnoc in Gaelic, this is where the name Knock came from. This plaque was put there 51 years before the apparition by the Parish Priest, Fr. Patrick O’Grady who built the old chapel in 1828. He was using a quote from (Isaiah 5:6,7) which says this place will be a Gateway to Heaven and will have a message for all nations. Fr. O’Grady also consecrated the church to Saint John the Baptist the precursor to Christ, who in prophesy was the first person to call Jesus the “Lamb of God” at His baptism in the Jordan.

When we try to understand the reason for this extraordinary apparition, without doubt it was in answer to the devout life of the Knock parish priest, Archdeacon Cavanagh, who was at the time the parish priest at Knock. He had given most of his young life as a curate working in Westport, which in his time was in the grip of the worst famine in history. He spent all of his spare time with victims of the Famine, who were dying out in the open in makeshift shelters, in ditches and at the side of roads, an excruciating slow death, of cold, starvation and thirst. Firstly he tried to bring practical help, selling everything he possessed and even getting into debt to buy food for them. He also attempted to give all he could reach, the last rites, as he felt that to save their eternal soul was even more important than the saving of their earthly body, but as he could not reach all at deaths door to give the last rites, he decided when he was transferred to Knock to offer 100 Masses to the Father in Heaven for all who died in the famine without reconciliation.

The Mass is identical to Calvary, meaning it brings the fruits of Christ’s  sacrifice to people at all times and in all places. The Mass is understood to be the most powerful atonement for sins, offering recompense to God for the offences of all humanity.

In this apparition there was no need for the spoken word, the visual was the message. Its purpose – to show the world that the Gospel message is real – the Holy Family is real – there is a meaning to life. There is another world, and we here on earth are in transition to it. Suffering and sacrifice are part of this life, the body is mortal, but the spirit is who we are, and the spirit is eternal.

The day Archdeacon Cavanagh said the last of these 100 masses was the day the apparition occurred. The altar where he celebrated these masses was against the inside gable wall of the church and it was the other side of this same wall that the apparition occurred. The apparition occurred on the evening of the day that that the Archdeacon said the last of his 100 masses for the Famine victims.

The Last Rites that Archdeacon Cavanagh wanted for all who died in the Famine, was to receive the final Eucharist which is known as “viaticum”, which is Latin for provision for the journey, but it is also a celebration of the Lamb’s Sacrifice for the sins of the world.

So the Archdeacon’s plea to Heaven for mercy, had a clear connection with the the apparition and the “Last Rites” for Famine Victims, which he was so upset  being unable to minister to them as they died.

We need to ponder the full depth of this extraordinary apparition. It seems firstly, a  visible answer to the Archdeacon’s hope, that if he offered up the Sacrifice of the Mass one hundred times, it would atone for all those many souls that had died in the Famine years, without receiving the Sacrament of viaticum in the last Rites.

This is why it was Jesus as the Sacrificial Lamb that appeared, who we know is the symbol of the Sacrifice, (the Mass) and the Lamb who takes away the sins of the world and an integral part of the last Rites. What clearer answer could the Archdeacon have got to his prayers.

Now let’s ponder the depth of what happened at the passion and death of Jesus. At the crucifixion, Jesus, the  Lamb, an innocent and sinless victim, took all of our sins unto Himself. He does not just bear all our sins and suffer the punishment due for them, but Jesus Himself expiates those sins. He offers Himself on the altar of the cross.  Through His blood He washes away our sins. However, unlike the Passover lamb that was slaughtered, roasted, and eaten, our Lord rose from the dead, with the power to conquer both sin and death for all of humanity. 

Jesus truly delivered us from sin and death, showing us the path to salvation, giving us the promise of eternal life. He  made a new, and everlasting covenant with His own blood. Realise that you were delivered from a futile way of life your forebears handed on to you, not by any diminishable sum of silver or gold, but by Christ’s blood beyond all price, the blood of the spotless, unblemished lamb” (I Peter 1:19).

We must not forget that this image of the risen Lamb surrounded by angels in Knock, is already prophesied in the Gospels. The Book of Revelation highlights this, picturing the Lamb surrounded by angels as “living creatures,” who cried out “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches, wisdom and strength, honour and glory and praise!” (Revelation 5:12). Jesus is the King of kings, and Lord of lords (Revelation 17:14) who will be victorious against the powers of evil and will invite the righteous to the wedding feast of the Lamb, the union of the Church, the new Jerusalem in heaven with the Lord.(Revelation 19:9)

For this reason, the Agnus Dei is sung during the breaking of the consecrated Host. St. John Chrysostom preached of how the breaking of the Host symbolised the Passion of Christ: “What Christ did not suffer on the Cross, He suffers in the sacrifice of the mass for thee.” The hymn itself invokes Christ and recalls His sacrificial death with overtones of a hymn of victory of the triumphal Lamb. This belief is emphasised again in every mass, when the priest holds up the broken Host and says,

“This is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, happy are those who are called to His supper.”

As we celebrate the mysteries of the Mass, we look to the Lamb who suffered, died and rose again for our salvation. We must gather around the altar of the Lamb, offering to Him our own hearts and souls, so that we may become one with Him, in the Holy Eucharist.

Saint John the Baptist was the first person ever, to point to Jesus as “The Lamb of God.” The Lamb, or Sacrificial Lamb, is a metaphor for the Sacrifice of Jesus for humankind, which is our eternal salvation.  In the year 1828 a little church was built in the small village of Cnoc, (meaning ‘the hill’) in Co Mayo. Extraordinarily, it was consecrated in the name of Saint John the Baptist, the first to point to Jesus as the sacrificial Lamb; this was fifty one years before the apparition. Today the village is known by the English spelling, Knock. At the gable of this small parish church, just fifty-one years later, there took place probably the greatest apparition in the world has ever known, when the Holy Family, appeared    together once again on earth, with Jesus as the Sacrificial Lamb on the Mass altar. This is the only time the sacrificial Lamb ever appeared in an apparition.

Why is the Sacrificial Lamb a Metaphor for Jesus’ Sacrifice?

In the land where the Gospels were written, the countryside was one of mountainous grassy terrain, so the main source of income was sheep farming. New-born lambs were very important in the life of a shepherd and his family. To the shepherd, the new-born lamb represented the continuation of his herd, his new flock, his future income, his survival.

On small farms of that time, the livelihood of shepherds depended on the survival and welfare of their flock. So if the shepherd lost a lamb it was a  considerable loss.       

Therefore, to sacrifice a lamb was a major statement by a shepherd, showing sincere sorrow for himself or one of his family, for having in some way, offended God  It also proclaimed his sincere belief in God. So it was done as an act of atonement, seeking God’s mercy and forgiveness, but it also demonstrated his total trust in God’s Divine Mercy. The ritual occurred in a public place and the lamb was known as the sacrificial lamb. It was slain on a ritualistic stone in the centre of the village, which in time became known as the sacrificial altar.

On such an occasion the neighbouring community would be invited to attend and take part in the ritual, thus benefiting from seeking forgiveness for the offending of God, by being part of it. The beginning of the ritual involved the shepherd slaying the animal, next he would roast it on a fire prepared beside the altar and then he would cut it into small pieces inviting the community to each come up to the altar, take and consume a piece, and offer it in communion with him to God, in atonement for the sins of the family and those of the whole community.

The sacrifice was in atonement for sins and a plea for God’s Mercy. So, when Jesus sacrificed himself on the altar of Calvary in atonement for our sins, He became the Sacrificial Lamb, this is why John the Baptist said in prophesy, ‘He is the ‘Lamb of God’. This is who God the Father, the Shepherd of all, chose to become humankind’s sacrificial lamb.

When Jesus was born to Mary, as a human being, He experienced human life, and identified with humanity, becoming friends with the apostles and all whom he met on his journey on earth. He experienced the nature of humans, their temptations, their shortcomings, their weaknesses. He finally made the supreme human sacrifice, giving up His earthly life for all humans, as a plea to the Father, to have mercy on flawed humanity and through His sacrifice bring God’s mercy, to all who seek it, and atone for their sins. So, when we receive the Eucharist, we are consuming the flesh of the lamb, in communion with all seeking God’s mercy, and we identify with the victim, who was sacrificed, in atonement for our sins, and the sins of the whole world.

It is when we are in fear of the future that we turn to God for His love and mercy, but it is only when we trust in His mercy, that God can show it to us. Love and mercy being practically one and the same, we cannot have one without the other, when we receive mercy, we are receiving undeserved love, because we are receiving forgiveness from the one who gave us life and we now have deeply offended.

The Lamb on the altar at Knock is Jesus the Sacrificial Lamb, down from the Cross, having suffered and died for humanity. Here he is the risen Lamb, the Lamb reborn, obtaining His victory from the Father, for His sacrifice, proof of almighty God’s mercy and man’s resurrection, rising victorious in the presence of those who love Him, His Family, Mary and Joseph, as we can now also expect to resurrect in the presence of our loving family in Heaven.

This silent apparition in Knock, is a powerful statement of God’s mercy and forgiveness for sinners, and of resurrection and new life with our loved ones, after suffering and sacrifice on this earth. The apparition needs no words. If you look at the image of Mary at Knock I believe she is in a posture of offering up once again her Son’s sacrifice to the Father in answer as she did at Calvary. It would seem that Our Lady is looking up to Heaven appealing to the Father for mercy for the famine victims through the sacrifice of her Son the Lamb in support of Archdeacon Cavanagh’s prayers in the form of 100 masses seeking forgiveness through the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, for all who died in the Famine without reconciliation.

 

Mary, being the mother of Jesus, the Lamb of God, is the greatest intercessor of all and the most important human in the story of salvation, for it was her ‘yes’ that brought Jesus the Lamb into the world and through Jesus  Sacrifice, God granted Divine Divine Mercy to Humankind.