Long before the first coach arrives at Knock, the friary is already awake. The chapel is quiet, lit only by a few candles, and the brothers gather for Lauds — the morning prayer of the Church.
There is a particular grace in this stillness. It is not empty silence, but a silence full of listening — the kind St Francis himself sought out on the mountainside at La Verna.
We are often asked what a typical day looks like for a Capuchin friar. The truth is that every day begins the same way: not with a task list, but with prayer. Everything else we do — welcoming visitors, hearing confessions, tending the garden — flows from that first hour of quiet.
If you visit Knock early in the morning, you are welcome to join us. You do not need to say anything. Simply being present is enough.