Irish immigrants, Apparition of Knock celebrated in new St. Patrick's Cathedral mural

A new mural, "What’s So Funny About Peace, Love, and Understanding" by Adam Cvijanovic, was recently unveiled and dedicated at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City.

Commissioned by Timothy Cardinal Dolan, Archbishop of New York, Cvijanovic’s mural reflects St. Patrick’s Cathedral’s historic role as a sanctuary for New York’s diverse Catholic community.

Prominently featured in the upper band of Cvijanovic’s mural are figures from the Apparition of Knock, a vision of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph, Saint John the Evangelist, angels, and the Lamb of God that was witnessed by more than a dozen townspeople in Co Mayo in 1879, the year St. Patrick’s Cathedral was consecrated. 

Elsewhere in the mural, images of the era’s Irish immigrants to New York stream in procession, as if disembarking from a ship. 

A parallel procession of contemporary immigrants from many nations and standing portraits of New Yorkers of varied backgrounds and eras are arrayed across the other panels.

Also in the mural, contemporary immigrants stand beside saints and civic figures—Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini, Father Felix Varela, Servant of God Dorothy Day, and Archbishop John Hughes—while monumental angels offer the city symbolic protection.

A new mural painted by artist Adam Cvijanovic was unveiled at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025, in New York. The mural, which is the largest permanent artwork commissioned for the cathedral in its 146-year history, celebrates the 1879 Apparition at Knock, Ireland, the faith of generations of immigrants to New York, and the service of New York City’s first responders. (Diane Bondareff/AP Content Services for the Archdiocese of New York)

The new mural, located in the cathedral’s Fifth Avenue entrance vestibule, is the largest permanent artwork commissioned for St. Patrick’s Cathedral in its 146-year history. It was dedicated during a Mass led by Cardinal Dolan on Sunday, September 21.

During the Mass, Fr Richard Gibbons, the Parish Priest and Rector of Knock Shrine in Co Mayo, delivered a homily.

"The depiction of the Apparition itself makes me extremely proud," Fr Gibbons said, addressing and congratulating Cvijanovic.

Of Knock Shrine, Fr Gibbons said: "Like St. Patrick's, it is depicted in the mural - we welcome everyone: the faithful, the faithless, the broken, the weary, the good, the not-so-good, the saints and the sinner, all."

Ahead of the unveiling, Cardinal Dolan commented: “With this mural, the archdiocese joins the Church’s long tradition of exhibiting extraordinary artworks in our places of worship.

“It is all the more meaningful that we do so while honoring the Apparition at Knock, which connects us profoundly to the Irish immigrants who did so much to build the Archdiocese and St. Patrick’s.

"The mural also recognizes the contributions of a multigenerational host of great individuals and guardians of the city and pays tribute to the immigrants of many lands who continue to bring their faith and hope to New York. 

“I am grateful to our generous donors and to the many talented people, led by Adam Cvijanovic, who have come together to create this wonderful artwork for America’s Parish Church.”

Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York, with artist Adam Cvijanovic, unveils a new mural painted by Cvijanovic at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025, in New York. The mural, which is the largest permanent artwork commissioned for the cathedral in its 146-year history, celebrates the 1879 Apparition at Knock, Ireland, the faith of generations of immigrants to New York, and the service of New York City’s first responders. (Diane Bondareff/AP Content Services for the Archdiocese of New York)

Discussing his concept for the mural, Cvijanovic said, “To realize the theme the archdiocese called for, the figures are realistic, but the narrative is abstract. Everything exists at once in a heavenly realm where there is no passage of time.

"The different eras are unified by the sky that runs across the entire mural, and by the rays of gold leaf that illuminate the space of the sacred figures and reflect onto the realm below.

"Each human figure, whether historic and renowned or contemporary and anonymous, realistically portrays an individual model, in keeping with the Church’s insistence on the dignity and worth of every person.

"You literally look up to these dozens and dozens of people—the immigrants as well as the sacred figures—who are all depicted as seen from below.

"My hope is that when you view them all spread across the full span of the mural, you’ll feel how all of humanity is welcomed here."