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Knock in shambles after 'apparition'


“Visionary” Joe Coleman, holding cross, at Knock Shrine
“Visionary” Joe Coleman, holding cross, at Knock Shrine

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A blistering attack has been launched by the manager of Knock Shrine against thousands of pilgrims who stampeded and left the place “in a terrible state” on Sunday in the hopes of seeing an apparition of the Virgin Mary.

Pat Lavelle, manager of the County Mayo shrine, said, “Our basilica was left in a terrible state afterwards. It was anything but holy or reverent. There was food and drink spilled inside, chairs turned upside-down, the carpets were soiled and even worse than that.”

Eyewitness Michael Commins, a local newspaper reporter, said it was as if panic suddenly gripped pilgrims in two chapels at the back of the huge basilica dedicated to Our Lady.

Commins said, “All the ingredients were present for a human catastrophe. A stampede the likes of which has never been seen in Knock took place within the confines of two of the chapels, and there was genuine fear that serious injuries or worse could be the end result of the unprecedented surge.”

Up to 15,000 people had gathered from all over Ireland for an apparition of Our Lady which had been predicted by Joe Coleman, a self-proclaimed “visionary” from Ballyfermot, Dublin.

Coleman has claimed that the Blessed Virgin has been visiting him for a number of years. Three weeks prior to last Saturday -- on October 11 -- more than 5,000 pilgrims gathered at Knock following an earlier prediction that there would be an apparition. Many then said they believed there was an apparition because they could see the sun shimmering and changing color, as well as dancing in the sky.

Last Saturday, Coleman and another “visionary,” Keith Henderson, knelt in the front row of a packed basilica. They claimed Our Lady appeared to them at 3 p.m., although there was a sense of anti-climax among the rest of crowd, most of whom looked constantly upwards with their cameras and mobile camera phones at the ready.

Hundreds left disappointed. One man, a native of Knock, scoffed at what he said resembled the “pagan art of sun worship.”

Then suddenly, at 3:20 p.m., the precise time that the Blessed Virgin had supposedly appeared three weeks earlier, there was a blitz of mobile phone messages from those outside and shouts that the sun had been seen dancing close to the basilica. Men, women and children rushed to get a glimpse.

Commins wrote in the Mayo News, “Never have I witnessed a more dangerous situation at any crowd gathering in my life. There was pandemonium for close on three minutes as people literally jumped across seats in a mad rush to the back of two of the chapels. A sense of terror gripped many as the stampede continued and it was a miracle in itself that no one was seriously hurt.


Nster.com


17 Comments

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Does anyone really care? It would seem not.
Not sure. I think it was a case it's a miracle "I can see and now I'm blind" after staring at the sun for so long. There is a recession on so every crackpot is out.
The true Church does not support abortion, which is murder, and of the innocent at that. It also does not support men doing men or women doing women--abominations of activity. . .
God has designated Mary as Queen of Heaven and earth, fool.
to skywriter: till you yourself have seen the miracle of the sun as I did in Medjugorje, shut up.
The true Catholic Church IS standing up for what is true, right and good. It does not stand up for homosexual activity or abortion although God loves homos and people who commit murder. Hoiwever, till these people stop and repent and turn themselves to God, there will be hell to pay.
Faith of our fathers, Holy Faith. Exactly! Which is the real message of the apparition at Knock. The apparition IS the message: ALL of it OUTSIDE the church, an altar with the Lamb of God, and SILENCE. IT IS THE STATE OF THE CHURCH since Vatican II. No true Catholic Doctrine, no True Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and Sacraments - ergo, no grace. All that remains of the Faith is a very small remnant, OUTSIDE of what passes as the 'official Catholic Church' that no longer preaches and teaches what Our Lord commanded. The Blessed Virgin Mary surrounded by the two who faithfully cared for and protected during her life. St. Joseph is the Protector of Holy Church. St. John who so loved Our Lord, just as those remaining few who themselves truly love Him. I am amazed that with the historic love of the Faith and brilliant minds of the Irish people, no one has yet figured this out. It is so clear and so simple - but the messages from Heaven are always clear and simple: Lourdes: prayer, penance; Fatima: prayer, penance, Mass, Holy Communion; La Salette: the warnings! Does anyone really care?
If you keep staring into the sun, you'll see whatever you want. Do it long enough, and you'll go blind.
I know the Blessed Virgin has appeared to many people over the years, but I doubt if this was such an occurance. We need her help now more than ever, but I think it is up to the Pope and the Bishops to finally acceed to her wishes from Fatima. Then abd only then will we have Peace! It has been over 90 years since her requests. Let's get with it!
What are they stampeding towards? Another hundred years of penance and misery? These present day charlatans at Knock--Coleman and Henderson--should be horsewhipped. They should also be sent the bill for the clean-up and repairs at the Basilica. Why should good people have to pick up after self-styled prophets and their herd of cattle?
I find it impossible to believe that Mary, humble servant of her God, would brazenly proclaim herself Queen of anything, much less Heaven and Earth. I also find it curious that she refers to a dates of the Julian calendar and calls December the holy month, when she, of all people, knows that her son was not born in December. In my opinion, yer man, Coleman, and his friend are seekers of media attention.
I am hesitant to give credence to any event that brings out the worst in people.
I think this is disgraceful and the manager of Knock church has a right to be furious. What is wrong with people today? I guess they think it is alright to act the fools when they should be behaving themselves and learn how to pick up after themselves. I am all for people finding God but this is ridiculous.
All the answers are inside themselves- not in the clouds, not in men in frocks, not in churches- ONLY IN THEMSELVES.
The holy month...what is the holy month...December? What are we doing in NOVEMBER when it should be December? It all sounds goofy to me...




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