Although this saint never traveled far from the Lebanese village of Beka-Kafra where he was born, his influence has spread widely. Youssef Antoun Makhlouf was raised by his uncle because his father, a mule driver, died when Joseph was only three. At the age of 23, Joseph joined the Monastery of St. Maron at Annaya, Lebanon, and took the name Sharbel or Charbel in honor of a second-century martyr. He professed his final vows in 1853, and was ordained six years later.
He died in the late afternoon on Christmas Eve. Christians and non-Christians soon made his tomb a place of pilgrimage and of cures. Pope Paul VI beatified Sharbel in 1965, and canonized him 12 years later.
