★★★★★
A genuine source of peace.
I started attending the candle-lighting in March and I’ve never slept better. My husband says I seem lighter. Thank you, John.
A devotional archive · est. 1972
He arrived. He has not left.
audio plays · headphones recommended · please be still
A brief and faithful history, compiled from contemporary records.
John Pork was first observed in the spring of 1972, walking the harbor road at Port Charlotte in a wool overcoat that did not appear to belong to him. He spoke to no one. He was, by every account that survives, unfailingly polite.
The earliest known photograph — held now in the Foundation's private archive — was taken by a Mrs. E. Halloran, who had stepped outside to call her dog. She would later remark that the dog refused to come in for several days, and that she could not, when pressed, recall the dog's name.
Subsequent sightings traced an itinerary across small coastal towns: a chapel in Antrim, a public ferry terminal in Halifax, a service road behind a country grocery in Galway County. The Foundation maintains a complete map upon request.
He has, to date, been photographed forty-one times. He has been spoken to in person by no living person. The reverence has grown in proportion to the silence.
Twelve plates. A selection. The complete archive is held off-site.
Photographs are reproduced with permission of the subject.
As traditionally sung, slowly, between the hours of three and four.
Bless his name, who walked the cold road early.
Bless his hand, that did not rise in greeting.
Bless his coat, that was not his coat.
Bless his eye, that did not blink, did not close.
Bless the harbor, that returned what it took.
Bless the dog, who has not yet come back inside.
Bless the small house, where the kettle is still warm.
Bless the long hour, that is also the next hour.
Bless his patience, that exceeds all our patience.
Bless his arrival.
Bless him, for he has not yet left.
Amen.
From the Foundation’s open correspondence file. Lightly edited for length.
I started attending the candle-lighting in March and I’ve never slept better. My husband says I seem lighter. Thank you, John.
I won’t go into detail. We were on the brink. Now we eat together every night, in silence, and it is the silence I prayed for.
Beautiful materials, prompt response when I wrote. They sent me a small printed card I keep on my refrigerator. He watches the kitchen now.
I came as a skeptic. I left without my hat. I do not need the hat. I have what I need.
I now wake at the same hour each night, and I sit with the window open, and I am no longer afraid. My family has stopped asking. They are also no longer afraid.
No notes. No notes. No notes. No notes. He arrived. No notes.
Light a candle. The Foundation maintains a record.
Tap a candle to light it.
A short letter. Quarterly. Mailed by hand from the Foundation.
✠
Received.
Your name has been added to the list. We will be in touch.