Today Pope Leo XIV visits Lebanon, after spending two days in Turkey, visiting the place when in 325 the Nicean Creed was formulated by the Bishops, prelates and theologians of that period. Although the Catholics in Turkey amounted to 0.04% of the population, his visit to Lebanon will be received by a larger number of Catholics. He will also visit the tomb of St. Sharbel, the 19th-century Maronite monk and hermit who is revered for his piety and a remarkable number of reported miracles attributed to his intercession. In honoring St. Sharbel, the Pope draws attention to a growing worldwide devotion to the Maronite saint — including in the United States, where organizations dedicated to promoting his devotion report an increased interest in the saint that is not limited to members of the Maronite Church. In 1977, St. Sharbel was canonized by Pope Paul VI, becoming the first Eastern Christian to be recognized as a saint by the Catholic Church. The Maronite Church is in full Communion with the pope and the Church of Rome. Although he lived a solitary life as a hermit, Sharbel’s reputation for holiness has continued to spread, fueled in part by his reputation as a miracle-maker.
At the Monastery of St. Maron in Annaya, Lebanon, where St. Sharbel lived until his death on Christmas Eve in 1898, the monks have documented more than 30,000 miracles. St. Sharbel was born Yousef Antoun Makhlouf on May 8, 1828, in the village of Bkaakafra in North Lebanon. After joining the Lebanese Maronite Order as a young man, St. Sharbel was ordained a priest in 1959 and lived for 16 years at the Annaya monastery before becoming a hermit. For the next 23 years until his death, he lived a life of devotion to the Holy Eucharist. He is said to have celebrated Mass each day at noon and would spend eight to 10 hours praying before and after receiving Communion. His feast day is celebrated every year on July 24.
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