Biden touches gable wall of Knock Shrine where Mary is said to have appeared in an apparition in 1879: Hundreds line the street for President’s religious pilgrimage with Hunter and Valerie
- Biden visited an Irish shrine on the last full day of his trip to Ireland
- He also visits clinic associated with Beau Biden, plus another genealogy stop
- Final speech will be outside cathedral in town where Blewitt ancestors are from
President Biden visited an Irish pilgrimage site Friday and placed his hand on the wall where witnesses claimed to have seen an apparition of the Virgin Mary in the 19th Century.
Biden’s Irish sojourn, which has been a rolling family reunion interspersed with speeches and meals with political leaders and local officials, took him to the Sanctuary of Our Lady Knock on the last day of his four day trip, where he got a tour.
There, he stood before a huge mosaic depicting the apparition of Mary, along with an alter with the likeness of a lamb and a cross. It was the most outward demonstration of Biden’s Catholic faith on the trip to the land of many of his ancestors.
He was shown around the basilica shrine by Father Richard Gibbons, the parish priest and rector. He pointed out some artifacts and the Stations of the Cross. The two shared a joke by the altar and laughed heartily.
President Joe Biden touches the original gable wall of the church at the Knock Shrine, with father Richard Gibbons, in County Mayo, Ireland, April 14, 2023. Biden visited the pilgrimage site during the last day of his trip
And then the heavens opened up just as they emerged to see what is left of the old wall where the apparition is said to have appeared. Father Gibbons held an umbrella for the president.
They stopped briefly at a square block of the old stone so Biden could lay his hand on the spot of the original gable wall of the church, just as millions of pilgrims have done before him.
Biden’s sister Valerie Biden Owens and son Hunter, who have been with him at every key stop on the trip, were there with him, with Biden’s son holding an umbrella for his aunt.
It was at the shrine location in 1879 where witnesses said they saw the apparition, along with a vision of Joseph and St. John behind their church.
As at other trips around Ireland, crowds gathered to get a look at Biden and his motorcade. One had a sign that read ‘Welcome Home Joe.’
Biden landed at Knock Airport on Friday afternoon to make a personal pilgrimage to County Mayo on the final day of his visit.
Having tracked down some his family Finnegan connections on the eastern side of the island in County Louth, he will visit the region that has family connections in the Blewitt branch of his family tree.
Brian and Father Richard shared a laugh in front of the mural of the Apparition of Mary
The sky opened up at one point during the visit, as it has been doing for days
Crowds cheered the president as he drove through County Mayo, where he has roots
Former Vice President Mike Pence – a potential 2024 rival – blasted his journey to an ancestral homeland the men share in light of the Pentagon security leak.
‘Well, I have to tell you, I’ve been to Ireland, it is a beautiful place, my grandfather immigrated from Ireland, Pence said in an interview from his home in Indiana on Friday.
‘But with everything this country is dealing with: inflation at 40-year high, American people struggling, China provocation, Russia on the move in eastern Europe, I don’t get what appears to be a family vacation in Ireland taking precedence and the president not doing a full-blown press conference,’ Pence added.
President Joe Biden boards Air Force One at the start of his last full day of activities in Ireland. He was accompanied by son Hunter Biden, sister Valerie Biden Owens, and top aides
Biden will visit the Knock Shrine, an Irish pilgrimage site that has been visited by Pope John Paul II and Pope Francis, as well as Mother Teresa.
It is one of several stops that will have the president once again pondering faith and family, a day after he addressed the Irish parliament and spoke at a banquet.
According to the shrine, a heavenly Apparition of Mary, mother of Jesus, appeared there in 1879.
Biden, a practicing Catholic, arrived here on Tuesday, and hasn’t had any time for worship on his schedule.
He is expected to engage in private prayer there, according to local media.
Then, it’s back to following his trail of ancestors, this time with a visit to the North Mayo Heritage and Genealogical Centre. The area is where Biden’s Blewitt relatives are from.
As Biden has been referencing throughout his trip, his great-great-great Grandfather Edward Blewitt the town of Ballina for Scranton during the Great Famine.
Biden had a more secular day Thursday when he addressed the Irish parliament
Biden was hosted at a banquet on the third day of his trip
Biden will speak outside St. Muredach’s Cathedral in Ballina, County Mayo, shortly before flying back to the U.S.
The president has distant relatives living in the area
Residents of Ballina are preparing for Biden’s visit
It is Ballina that Biden and his advance team have chosen for the final speech of his trip. He has an evening address planned outside Saint Muredach’s Cathedral in County Mayo.
It is certain to have a picturesque backdrop of the Cathedral, located on the River Moy.
Earlier in his day, which starts around lunchtime, Biden plans a private visit to Mayo Hospice, a center with a plaque bearing the name of his late son, Beau, who Biden referenced Thursday during his speech to the Irish general assembly.
Biden ‘turned the sod’ there during a 2017 groundbreaking.
Following his speech, Biden heads back to the U.S., although he declared ‘I’m at home’ during his address to the Irish parliament, in his latest attestation for his love of Ireland.
But he’s not ready for the White House just yet. The president plans to spend the weekend at yet another of his homes: his Delaware beach house.
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