Monthly Sensory Friendly Mass at Knock Shrine

What to Expect

Knock Shrine runs a sensory friendly Mass on the last Sunday of every month at 12.30pm in the Parish Church, and it continues right through the year rather than only during the pilgrimage season. The next one falls on Sunday 30 August 2026. The changes are deliberate and specific: there is no music, the lighting is kept low, and pictorial resources are provided for people who follow the Mass better through images than through text.

The shrine encourages people to bring whatever helps them cope with a church setting, naming noise-cancelling headphones, wiggle seats and fidgets as examples. Nobody is asked to sit still or stay silent, and moving in and out during the ceremony is expected rather than tolerated. It is designed primarily for autistic people and for families who find the noise and crowding of a normal Sunday Mass at a busy shrine difficult, but it is a public Mass and anyone can attend. The Parish Church is a smaller and calmer building than the Basilica, which matters on a weekend when a large pilgrimage may be filling the main grounds.

Good to Know

• Last Sunday of every month at 12.30pm, all year round. Next date is Sunday 30 August 2026.
• Venue is the Parish Church at Knock Shrine, Knock, Co. Mayo, F12 Y226.
• No music, subdued lighting, and pictorial resources available on the day.
• Bring headphones, fidgets or seating aids if they help. No booking is needed.
• Questions to Nicola in the Faith Renewal office at Knock Shrine on 094 938 8100.
• Note that 30 August 2026 is also the day of the Order of Malta Pilgrimage at the shrine, so the wider grounds will be busier than usual.

Getting There

Knock is on the N17 in east Mayo, about 15km north of Claremorris and 30 minutes from Castlebar. The Parish Church stands at the heart of the shrine grounds beside the Apparition Chapel, a short walk from the main car parks, which are free. Ireland West Airport Knock is 20 minutes north near Charlestown, and Bus Eireann services on the Galway to Sligo corridor stop in the village.