St. Charbel Makhlouf

Charbel-name means “God’s Story”

Born: May 8, 1828

Died: December 24, 1898

Beatified: December 5, 1965 by Pope Paul VI

Canonized: October 9, 1977 by Pope Paul VI The youngest of 5 children, St. Charbel was born Yousef Antoun Makhlouf in in 1828. His parents were Antoun and Brigitta Makhlouf. St. Charbel’s father was abducted by Muslims and forced into hard labor. He died when St. Charbel was 3 years old. His mother remarried a deacon in the Lebanese Marionite Church who went on to become a priest. St. Charbel was very pious from a young age. He prayed in front of the Blessed Mother icon with incense. He wanted to become a like his uncles. His mother and uncle tried to dissuade him from the monastic life. At age 23 he walked several miles to enter the Monastery of . Two years later, Yousef made vows of poverty, chastity and obedience and took the name Charbel after the Martyr St. Charbel of Antioch (121 A.D.) As a monk, he chanted the Divine Office 7 times a day, did laundry, worked in the kitchen, farmed, worked in carpentry and made shoes. In 1859, Charbel was ordained a priest. His desire was to become a was refused. He spent so many hours praying deep into the night, that the Prior was concerned he would burn too much oil. The men in charge of the oil played a trick on Charbel and gave him only water. When they saw light emanating from his cell, they alerted the Prior who understood that this was a divine event. He was permitted to enter the hermitage of SS. Peter and Paul. St. Charbel ate only one small meal a day and practiced severe mortifications stating that “Poverty helps salvation. Frugality strengthens the soul.” The Eucharist was the center of his life. He offered his whole life so that the whole world would return to God. He spent most of his time in prayer and slept little saying, “Praying relaxes more efficiently than sleep.” He was considered saintly before his death and was said to be “Faithful to his vows, exemplary in his obedience, and his conduct more angelic than human.” At age 70, St. Charbel had a stroke while elevating the Host during consecration at Mass. He died 3 days later on Christmas Eve, 1898. His body was placed in the ground without a coffin. A few months later, Christians as well as Muslims reported seeing light shining from his grave. His grave was opened and his incorrupt body was observed exuding sweat and blood. He is one of the most prolific miracle workers. Over 26,000 miracles have been attributed to the intercession of St. Charbel from before and after his death including and up to the present time. In 2016, Dafne Gutierrez, a 30-year-old blind mother of three from Arizona was healed after venerating the relics of St. Charbel. In 2017, a baby boy from France named Côme de Cacqueray was born with a malformation that damaged his kidneys. His prognosis was bleak. After anointing him with oil from St. Charbel and praying a novena to him, the boy miraculously was cured.

“A man who prays lives out the mystery of existence, and a man who does not pray scarcely exists.”~ St. Charbel

“The family is the basis in the Lord’s plan, and all the forces of evil aim to demolish it. Uphold your families and guard them against the grudges of the evil one by the presence of God.” ~ St. Charbel