Born Youssef (Joseph) Zaroun Makhlouf in the mountain village of Bekaa Kafra, Lebanon, to a poor Maronite family.
He joined the Monastery of St. Maron at Annaya at age 23, taking the name Sharbel after a 2nd-century martyr. He was ordained a priest in 1859.
In 1875, he received permission to live as a hermit in a small chapel near the monastery, embracing a life of extreme asceticism, prayer, fasting, and solitude modeled after early desert fathers and St. Maron.
He died at age 70 from a stroke while celebrating Mass on Christmas Eve 1898. After his death, his tomb became associated with many reported miracles, including healings, an incorrupt body, and a mysterious liquid (sometimes described as blood or oil) that flowed from it. He was beatified in 1965 and canonized by Pope Paul VI in 1977.
Saint Sharbel is one of the best-known modern saints from the Middle East and a patron of Lebanon. His feast day is celebrated on July 24 in the Maronite Church and many other places. He is venerated especially for his deep holiness, humility, and intercession for the sick and those in need.
The tomb of Saint Sharbel is here in Lebanon
In the U.S. there are several Shrines to Saint Sharbel:
New York City: Saint Patrick’s Cathedral
Orlando, Florida: Shrine to Saint Sharbel in Saint Jude Maronite Catholic Church
Phoenix, Arizona: Saint Jude Maronite Church and Shrine
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: The Saint Sharbel Spiritual Life Center