About Our Lady of Knock Shrine (One Faith Community) · East Durham, New York
Our Lady of Knock Shrine is a Roman Catholic shrine in the hamlet of East Durham, in the northern Catskills of Greene County, New York, dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title of Our Lady of Knock, in honor of the 1879 apparition at Knock, County Mayo, Ireland. Opened in 1989, it is one of the few Catholic shrines in the United States built as a near-total reproduction of an Irish pilgrimage church, with its stained-glass windows, statuary, mahogany carvings, tabernacle and even a 32-foot spire crafted in County Donegal, Ireland and shipped across the Atlantic. Today the shrine functions as part of an "One Faith Community" network that also includes Sacred Heart Church in Cairo and St. John the Baptist Church in Greenville, all within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany. It welcomes pilgrims, tourists visiting the Irish-themed Catskills, and local Catholics for daily prayer, weekend Mass, and quiet time before the Blessed Sacrament.
- Established
- 1989
- Patron
- Our Lady of Knock (Blessed Virgin Mary, under the title commemorated at Knock, County Mayo, Ireland)
- Rector
- Fr. Russell Bergman (became Pastor of Sacred Heart/Our Lady of Knock Shrine/St. John the Baptist on July 1, 2026); previously served under Fr. Jay Atherton, Pastor
- Diocese
- Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany
Why belong here
Our Lady of Knock Shrine offers something genuinely rare in the United States: a true Catholic pilgrimage shrine rather than a typical parish church, with an interior of Irish stained glass, mahogany carvings and a tabernacle shipped wholesale from County Donegal. It is open daily from 8:00 am to 7:00 pm for visitors who want to light a candle or pray before the Blessed Sacrament, hosts Saturday vigil Mass and Sunday Masses (with all weekend Masses held at the shrine during the winter season), and is the devotional center of a close-knit 'One Faith Community' that also gathers at Sacred Heart in Cairo and St. John the Baptist in Greenville. For anyone with Irish-Catholic roots, an interest in Marian devotion, or a love of pilgrimage sites, it is a place where you can pray in the Catskills exactly as the faithful pray at the original Knock Shrine in County Mayo.
Mass times at Our Lady of Knock Shrine (One Faith Community)
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday: by request after the 4:00 pm Vigil Mass
- By appointment — call the Parish Network office at 518-943-3150
Adoration times
- Shrine open daily 8:00 am – 7:00 pm for prayer before the Blessed Sacrament (per parish website)
- Note: The 24/7 Adoration Chapel is at St. John the Baptist Church, Greenville (in the rear of the church), not at the shrine itself
Our Lady of Knock Shrine — Overview
Our Lady of Knock Shrine is the devotional heart of the 'One Faith Community' Catholic network in the northern Catskills, located on Route 145 in the hamlet of East Durham, Greene County, New York. Opened in 1989, it is a 500-seat Roman Catholic shrine whose interior was crafted in County Donegal, Ireland and shipped to East Durham. It belongs to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany and shares pastoral and administrative staff with Sacred Heart Church in Cairo and St. John the Baptist Church in Greenville.
- Type: Catholic Shrine / pilgrimage church
- Diocese: Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany
- Opened: 1989
- Seating capacity: ~500
- Network: One Faith Community with Three Worship Sites
History of the Shrine
The shrine was opened in 1989 to honor the 1879 apparition of the Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph, Saint John the Evangelist and the Lamb of God at Knock, County Mayo, Ireland — an event witnessed by fifteen people of all ages on the gable wall of the local parish church, in silence, for about two hours. The interior was designed and built in County Donegal by craftsman Gerry Laverty of Dunkineely and his team of seventeen, with two of Laverty's daughters executing roughly seventy stained-glass windows and Laverty himself carving twenty statues. Everything from the tabernacle to a 32-foot spire was packed into two shipping containers and sent to East Durham, where the church was assembled in about a year.
- 1879 — Apparition at Knock, County Mayo, Ireland (August 21)
- 1879 — First Church inquiry finds testimony 'trustworthy and satisfactory'
- 1936 — Second inquiry confirms the 1879 findings
- 1979 — Saint John Paul II visits the Irish shrine for its centenary
- 1989 — Our Lady of Knock Shrine in East Durham opens
- 2015–2016 — Designated a Jubilee Church for the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy
- 2025 — Listed as a Jubilee Church for the Holy Year 2025
Architecture, Stained Glass and Irish Craftsmanship
The shrine's design is essentially an Irish devotional interior transplanted into a Catskills building shell. Walls and screens are enriched with mahogany carvings; the altar screen deliberately recreates the gable wall of the original Knock parish church where the apparition appeared. About seventy stained-glass windows from County Donegal depict Celtic saints, and Stations of the Cross are rendered in the same medium. The exterior carries a carved wooden relief of a family of four entering the church, with the John 6:51 inscription overhead and a stained-glass window donated by The Mayo Society above the doors.
- ~70 stained-glass windows from Donegal depicting Celtic saints
- 20 hand-carved statues by Gerry Laverty
- Mahogany carvings throughout the interior
- Altar screen modeled on the Knock gable wall
- Stations of the Cross in stained glass
- Exterior doors: wood carving of a family of four + John 6:51 inscription
- Mayo Society stained-glass window above the main entrance
- 32-foot spire shipped from Ireland as part of the fit-out
Clergy and Network Leadership
Our Lady of Knock Shrine is pastored together with Sacred Heart in Cairo and St. John the Baptist in Greenville. Recent pastoral bulletins list Rev. Jay Atherton as Pastor and Rev. Patrick Rice as Parochial Vicar, with Deacon Michael McDonald assisting. A parish-network announcement records that Rev. Russell Bergman was appointed by Bishop Edward B. Scharfenberger to succeed as Pastor of the three parishes effective July 1, 2026.
- Rev. Jay Atherton — Pastor (predecessor)
- Rev. Patrick Rice — Parochial Vicar, Hudson Valley Vicariate, West Parish Network
- Deacon Michael McDonald
- Rev. Russell Bergman — incoming Pastor (effective July 1, 2026)
Network Office and Staff
All three parishes share a common network office located at 66 William Street, Catskill, NY 12414, reachable at 518-943-3150. This office handles sacramental coordination, RCIA inquiries, adult Confirmation inquiries, communications and bookkeeping for the network.
- Bookkeeper — Janine O'Leary
- Communications Manager — Michele Brown
- Administrative Assistant — Siobhain Lavery
- Faith Formation Administrator — MaryJo Buzzanco
Faith Formation and Sacraments
Faith Formation for children and youth across the network is delivered through the Hudson Valley Vicariate West Faith Formation program at hvvwff.org. Adults who wish to become Catholic, complete their initiation, or be confirmed can contact the Parish Network office in Catskill for RCIA and adult Confirmation preparation. Sacramental records, baptism, marriage, and anointing arrangements are coordinated through the same office.
- Faith Formation (K–adult) — hvvwff.org
- RCIA (Order of Christian Initiation of Adults)
- Adult Confirmation preparation
- Baptism, Marriage, Anointing of the Sick — coordinated via the Network Office
Visiting the Shrine in East Durham
The shrine is a working pilgrimage church rather than a museum. Visitors can drop in during the daily open hours (8:00 am – 7:00 pm) to light a candle or sit in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament. The most rewarding time for visitors is often before or after one of the weekend Masses, so that the Irish stained glass, mahogany carvings and altar screen can be seen in the context of liturgical worship. Confessions are available on request after the Saturday Vigil Mass.
- Daily opening 8:00 am – 7:00 pm for private prayer
- Saturday Vigil Mass at 4:00 pm
- Sunday Masses at 9:00 am and 11:00 am (winter schedule)
- Confessions on request after the Saturday Vigil Mass
- On-site parking at the shrine grounds
The Knock Apparition — Background
The shrine exists to honor the apparition of Our Lady at the village of Knock in County Mayo, Ireland, on the evening of August 21, 1879. Fifteen official witnesses, ranging in age from about five to seventy-five, reported seeing the Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph, Saint John the Evangelist, a Lamb upon an altar with a cross, and angels. The vision was silent, lasted about two hours, and was observed by the people while they recited the rosary. A diocesan inquiry in 1879 found the testimony trustworthy, a second inquiry in 1936 confirmed it, and every Pope from Pius XII onward has recognized the apparition, with Saint John Paul II visiting Knock in 1979 for the centenary.
- Date: August 21, 1879
- Location: gable wall of Knock parish church, County Mayo
- 15 official witnesses, ages 5 to 75
- Vision lasted about two hours
- Recognized by every Pope since Pius XII
East Durham and the Irish Catskills
The hamlet of East Durham in the northern Catskills has long been promoted as an Irish-heritage destination, anchored in part by the presence of Our Lady of Knock Shrine and a nearby 'Irish Village' of replica structures representing an idealized composite 19th-century Irish village. The shrine's Irish connections — the Mayo Society's donated window above the doors, the Donegal craftsmanship, and the Knock dedication — tie it directly into that broader Irish-American cultural landscape of the Catskills.
- Hamlet of East Durham, Town of Durham, Greene County
- Northern Catskill Mountains
- Heritage tourism in the 'Irish Village' nearby
- Mayo Society (founded 1879, NYC) connection
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Jay Athertonthrough c. 2025/2026
Listed as Pastor on the parish bulletin page; also served simultaneously as Pastor of Sacred Heart (Cairo), St. John the Baptist (Greenville), St. Theresa's (Windham), Sacred Heart (Palenville) and Immaculate Conception (Haines Falls).
- Rev. Russell Bergmaneffective July 1, 2026
Named Pastor of the Church of the Immaculate Conception (Glenville) and Our Lady of Grace (Ballston Lake); separately assigned as Pastor of Sacred Heart (Cairo), Our Lady of Knock Shrine (East Durham), and St. John the Baptist (Greenville) effective July 1, 2026.