The Incorruptible Body

Saint Charbel died on Christmas Eve 1898 after a stroke suffered while celebrating Mass. He was buried, according to monastic custom, without a coffin in the common cemetery of the Monastery of Saint Maron in Annaya.

In the weeks that followed, villagers and pilgrims from the surrounding mountains reported a brilliant light — described as a column or halo — rising from his grave for forty-five consecutive nights. The Superior of the monastery, moved by these reports and the persistent rumor of sanctity, asked permission to exhume the body.

When the grave was opened in April 1899, the body of the hermit was found perfectly preserved, despite the rain that had flooded the burial pit and the absence of any coffin. From his pores flowed a reddish liquid resembling blood mixed with sweat. It was found intact again when the tomb was opened in 1950 and 1952.