Prayer services to mark 40th anniversary of apparitions at grotto near Tipperary border

Prayer services and Masses to mark the 40th anniversary of apparitions of the Virgin Mary at Melleray Grotto in county Waterford will take place for nine nights starting this weekend.

The prayer celebrations begin at the grotto located close to Mount Melleray Abbey this Saturday, August 16 from 8pm to 9.30pm and will continue each night at the same time until Saturday, August 24.

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Bishop of Waterford & Lismore Most Rev. Alphonsus Cullinan will celebrate Mass at the grotto on Sunday, August 17 at 8pm with the Lismore Choir performing at the ceremony.

Saturday will be the 40th anniversary of the first of a series of Marian apparitions and spiritual experiences witnessed at the grotto dedicated to Our Lady of Lourdes between that day and August 24, 1985.

The grotto featuring a statue Our Blessed Lady of Lourdes erected on a cliff face with a statue of St Bernadette at the base was built in the early 1980s a short walk from Mount Melleray Cistercian Abbey, which is situated at the foot of the Knockmealdown Mountains a few miles from the Tipperary border.

It was one of the holy grottos and locations around Ireland where apparitions of Our Lady and other divine figures and moving statues of the Virgin Mary were reported in the summer of 1985. The most famous was the moving statue of Our Lady at Ballinspittle in county Cork.

The first Marian apparition at Melleray Grotto was witnessed by a 17-year-old local girl, Ursula O'Rourke, on Friday, August 16, 1985 when she visited the site with her family.

Over the next nine days, apparitions and spiritual experiences were witnessed by several other people including children and huge crowds began to gather each day at the grotto.

The adjoining roads were jammed with traffic with everyone anxious to be part of what was happening.

The final apparition was witnessed by 12-year-old Tom Cliffe at 3pm on Saturday, August 24 when he noticed the Virgin Mary statue moving back and forth. He asked the question ‘Are you the mother of Christ’? To which the reply was ‘I am’.

In the intervening years, much work has gone into the areas surrounding the grotto. Visitors continued to arrive at the grotto including groups from Northern Ireland, which continues to this day. Railway sleepers were erected in a one-way system to allow people to enter and exit the grotto.

The Melleray Grotto Committee was formed at the time to cater for the needs of the many visitors.

The committee initially provided basic shelter and a hut to serve tea and biscuits and was responsible for the current facilities at the grotto that includes rest rooms and toilets and a recently refurbished car park.

The walkway down to the grotto is fully tarmacked and there is a comfortable sheltered building at the base. More information on the 40th anniversary events at Melleray Grotto is available on the Melleray Grotto Facebook page.

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