Knock Shrine
While stationed at Knock, Horan oversaw the building of a new church for Knock Shrine, which was dedicated in 1976. The shrine was the stated goal of Pope John Paul II's visit in 1979. The pope travelled to Knock as part of a state visit to Ireland, marking the centenary of the famous Knock apparitions. Horan worked with Judy Coyne to organize the papal visit. He was responsible for the refurbishment of the church grounds, along with the construction of a huge church, with a capacity of 15,000. This newly constructed church was given the status of basilica by the pope. The day after the papal visit, Horan began his campaign to build an international airport in Barnacuige, a small village near Charlestown, County Mayo.
Read more about this topic: James Horan (Monsignor)
Famous quotes containing the words knock and/or shrine:
“Could that old god rise up again
We’d drink a can or two,
And out and lay our leadership
On country and on town,
Throw likely couples into bed
And knock the others down.”
—William Butler Yeats (1865–1939)
“The United Nations cannot do anything, and never could; it is not an animate entity or agent. It is a place, a stage, a forum and a shrine ... a place to which powerful people can repair when they are fearful about the course on which their own rhetoric seems to be propelling them.”
—Conor Cruise O’Brien (b. 1917)