https://www.ololmiami.org/saint-charbel
Birth Name: Youssef Antoun Makhlouf
Religious Name: Sharbel (after the 2nd-century Antiochian martyr)
Date of Birth: May 8, 1828
Place of Birth: Bekaa Kafra, North Lebanon — the highest inhabited village in the Middle East
Nationality: Lebanese
Language: Syriac-Aramaic (liturgical), Arabic (vernacular)
Rite: Maronite Catholic
Parents: Antoun Zaarour Makhlouf and Brigitta Chidiac
Siblings: Four brothers and one sisterYoussef was born into a devout Maronite Catholic farming family. The family prayed together daily, attended Divine Liturgy faithfully, and fostered a love of the Church and the Blessed Mother. His paternal uncle was a monk, which deeply inspired the young boy. After his father's early death when Youssef was just three, his mother raised him in faith, later marrying a Maronite deacon.
As a child, Youssef was known for his quiet nature and love of solitude. He spent much time in a cave near his home, which he turned into a small personal chapel with an icon of the Virgin Mary. There, he would kneel for hours in prayer. Even as a boy, he practiced austerity, fasting from meat and sleeping on the ground.
At the age of 23, Youssef left home secretly to enter religious life, knowing that his family would try to dissuade him. He joined the Monastery of Our Lady of Mayfouq, part of the Lebanese Maronite Order (LMO). In 1853, he transferred to the Monastery of St. Maron in Annaya, where he officially received the religious habit and took the name “Sharbel.”Sharbel was sent to study at the Kfifan Monastic Seminary, a theological center of learning. There, he studied under two holy men:- Blessed Nimatullah Kassab Al-Hardini, a master of spiritual life and future Maronite saint.
- Father Al-Douaihy, a scholarly priest and theologian.
Sharbel distinguished himself by his silence, obedience, and extraordinary discipline. He excelled in the study of Scripture, theology, and Syriac liturgy.
He was ordained a priest on July 23, 1859, by Bishop Joseph al-Marid, at the patriarchal seat of Bkerké. Returning to the Monastery of St. Maron in Annaya, Father Sharbel lived a simple monastic life filled with manual labor, prayer, and spiritual direction.On December 16, 1898, while celebrating the Divine Liturgy, Fr. Sharbel suffered a stroke during the consecration, just as he elevated the Body of Christ. He was taken back to his cell, where he remained in prayer and suffering until his death on December 24, 1898 — Christmas Eve.
He was buried in the monastery cemetery, but soon after, a blinding light was seen shining from his tomb for 45 consecutive nights. Monks and villagers witnessed the light and began to speak of his holiness.
St. Sharbel is credited with numerous conversions to the Catholic faith, including those of atheists and Muslims who witnessed his miraculous power or received visions of him. The Lebanese Maronite Order docuмented these conversions alongside physical healings, with many cases supported by official medical reports and eyewitness testimonies. These accounts contributed to his title as the "Wonder-Worker of the East" and helped expand his devotion globally beyond the Maronite tradition.Saint Sharbel Makhlouf is a 21st-century saint for all people, Eastern and Western, sick and healthy, believer and seeker. His quiet, hidden life of holiness continues to bear fruit through miracles and conversions.St. Sharbel Pray for Us!
Topic: Stories of Conversion (Read 48445 times)