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Hail Mary
+ Ave Maria +  |
(937 KB zip
file)
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The angel Gabriel
visited Mary in Nazareth, in
Galilee.
In Various Languages: English,
frensh & Arabic, Pray :
- Hail Mary
- Ave Maria
Texts and Animation
Icons |
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Our Father
+ Notre Père +
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(1.05 MB zip
file)
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In Various Languages: English,
frensh & Arabic, Pray :
- Our Father
- Notre Pere
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Texts and Animation
Icons |
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| In Arabic
Languages, Pray :
Texts and Animation
Icons |
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| 1. |
| Icons
of Jesus
Christ, 57
icons |
(3.79 MB zip
file)
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- Christ Icons
30 icons
- Live of Christ Icons
11
icons
- Cross
Icons
10
icons
- Holy Family
Icons
6
icons
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| 2. |
| Icons
of Mother of God, 51 icons |
(2.69 MB zip
file)
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- Mother of God Icons
51 icons
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| 3. |
| Icons
of Saints, 91 icons |
(4.77 MB zip
file)
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- Saints Icons
79 icons
- Archangels & Prophets
Icons 12
icons
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| Maronite history is coloured with the
romance that attaches itself to a struggle of a
determined people. Most nations in their history
often have to make a choice between
confrontation or cooperation and time has shown
us that minorities usually pay for their
continued existence through deformation of
character or out right collaboration.
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Continue ...
Live of Saint
Maroun |
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The
Maronites through perpetual resistance and the
preservation of a precarious independence have
escaped this fate. Not only have they
survived, but they have survived uncowed.
The remarkable nature of their history lies hand
in hand with that of Lebanon, for centuries
being their retreat and fortress. Lebanon and
the Maronites are inseparably attached. The
Maronites have survived the storms of invasion,
occupation, repression and suppression for over
1600 years, preserving their religion,
traditions and state. Through the ages they
refused to bow to their occupiers, at the
height of the Umayyad dynasty the Maronites even
exacted tribute as a price for their good
behaviour, in due course their Christian
neighbours all succumbed to Islam but not
Lebanon, holding a Maronite majority well into
the 20th century, even their Syriac (Christian
Aramaic) language was widely spoken well into
the late 19th century and still survives today
in their liturgy and in some of their villages.
The mountain Maronites remain much as the
earliest travelers found them, not having lost
the virtues for which they have been admired.
The ingenuity and perseverance with which they
have tamed the hillsides is remarkable, striving
for soil, capturing it from rocks laboriously,
foot by foot. Their terraced vines, piled
vertically one above the other, climb to the
snows. Their minute orchards are often wedged in
the faults and crannies of precipices. Such
industry has its reward, the very rocks have
grown fertile. Their long political struggle and
the effort to squeeze a livelihood from the
rocks and precipices have made them independent,
courageous and provident.
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To learn more
about the Maronite Church and its
history |
| Life of Saint
Maroun |
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| Saint Maroun, born
in the middle of the 4th century was a priest
who latter became a hermit, retiring to a
mountain of Taurus near Antioch. His holiness
and miracles attracted many followers, and drew
attention throughout the empire. St John of
Chrysostom sent him a letter around 405 AD
expressing his great love and respect asking St
Maroun to pray for him.
St Maroun's way was deeply monastic with
emphasis on the spiritual and ascetic aspects of
living. For Saint Maroun, all was connected to
God and God was connected to all. He did not
separate the physical and spiritual world and
actually used the physical world to deepen his
faith and spiritual experience with God.
St
Maroun embraced the quiet solitude of the
mountain life. He lived his life in open air
exposed to the forces of nature such as sun,
rain, hail and snow. His extraordinary desire to
come to know Gods presence in all things,
allowed St Maroun to transcend such forces and
discover that intimate union with God. He was
able to free himself from the physical world by
his passion and fervour for prayer and enter
into a mystical relationship of love with God.
This missionary work came to fruition
when in the mountains of Syria, St Maroun was
able to convert a pagan temple into a Christian
Church. This was to be the beginning of the
conversion of Paganism to Christianity in Syria
which would then influence and spread to
Lebanon. After his death in the year 410 AD, his
spirit and teachings lived on through his
disciples.
Link
: http://www.maroun.org/
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They
are sanctified at Saint Peter Basilica in
Rome.
- Saint
Charbel, 7 -
October 1977
- Saint
Rafca,
10 - June
2001
- Saint Hardini,
16 - May
2004
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| Life of Saint
Charbel |
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Born at
Beqaa-Kafra, the highest inhabited place in
Lebanon, near the famous cedars, the young
Joseph Makhlouf grew up with the example of two
of his uncles, who were both hermits, before his
eyes.Aged twenty-three, he left home secretly
and entered the monastery of Our Lady of Mayfuq,
taking the name of a Syrian martyr, Charbel, on
his admission. Ordained a priest in 1859, he
took up his residence at the monastery of St
Maroun at Annaya, which is over 3500 feet above
the Mediterranean Sea.
Father Charbel lived
in this community for fifteen years, and was a
model monk in the exact sense of the word: it is
recorded that, although he rejoiced to be able
to be of the slightest assistance to his
neighbour, nevertheless it was always a trial to
him to leave his monastery. It was his delight
to pass his time in singing the office in choir,
in working in the fields and in spiritual
reading, and nobody was surprised when
eventually he asked, and received permission to
go and live the life of a hermit. Whilst
Maronite monks are generally engaged in
parochial and pastoral work, provision is
nevertheless made for those chosen souls who
feel called to the eremitical life to pursue
their vocation, generally in groups of two or
three.
So began for the new hermit that holy
life which has been led unaltered since the days
of the desert fathers: Perpetual fasting, with
abstinence from meat, fruit and wine; manual
work sanctified by prayer; a mattress stuffed
with leaves and covered with goatskin for a bed
and a block of wood wrapped in a piece of old
habit for a pillow; the interdiction to leave
the hermitage without express permission. St
Charbel placed himself under obedience to the
other hermit, and passed twenty-three years
thus, his various austerities seeming only to
increase the robustness of his health. The only
disturbance to his prayer came in the form of an
ever-increasing stream of visitors drawn by his
reputation for sanctity to seek from him advice,
the promise of prayer or some miracle.
Then
one morning, in the middle of December 1898, he
was taken ill without warning, just before the
consecration while celebrating Mass. His
companion helped him to his cell, which he was
never to leave. The paralysis gradually gained
on him and he was anointed. On the night of
Christmas Eve he died, repeating the prayer
which he had been unable to finish at the altar:
"Father of truth, behold Thy Son, who makes
atoning sacrifice unto Thee. Accept the
offering; He died for me that I might have life.
Behold the offering! Accept it..." The words
summed up a life of seventy
years.
Link
: http://www.charbel.org/
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| Life of Saint
Rafca |
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She was born in
Himlaya, a small village near Bickfaya (Metn),
on June 29, 1832 and was given the name
Petronilla as a reminder that she was a daughter
of St. Peter, on whose feast day she entered the
world.
The Land of Rafca is Lebanon: a
country, torn by four years of war, in search of
peace and tranquillity. The wealthy, big powers
have brought their conflicts there and are
trying to resolve them there. The greatness of
that Land lies in the fact that it has always
been a land of refuge.
The Land of Rafca is
the land of the Canaanites and the Phoenicians,
and is mentioned with enthusiasm and wonder more
than sixty times in Holy Scripture.
Like
Therese of Lisieux, Rafca, "The Little Flower of
Lebanon," the "Purple Rose," the "Silent and
Humble Nun", had to tell her life story to her
Mother Superior some months before her death.
Obedience to this request is the reason why
today we are able to know something about this
woman who sought for nothing else but to be
forgotten by men and live only for God. However,
the perfume of this violet immediately spread
after her death and has attracted the attention
of the ecclesiastical authorities.
The Cause
for Beatification of the Servant of God, Rafca,
is currently in Rome. It will now be up to the
Holy Father to make the final decision regarding
her virtues and the graces obtained through her
intercession, as to whether he will elevate her
to the ranks of the saints. As we anticipate and
pray for this glorious day, we submit ourselves
to the decision of the Church and patiently
wait.
Rafca's condition grew more
serious. The pain she was enduring in her eyes
became excruciating. Her Superior sent her to
Tripoli for treatment. The treatments were most
painful, too, and she lost a great deal of
blood. However, during all of this time, she
kept repeating, "With your sufferings, O Lord,
for your glory." ...
In 1897, a group of
nuns from the convent of St. Simeon of the Horn
moved to the new convent of St. Joseph Ad-Daher.
Mother Ursula, who was to be the Superior of the
new foundation, asked to have Sister Rafca
included in the group. She wished to have her
example before the eyes of the sisters as they
met with the hardships that are always inherent
in establishing a new foundation.
Sister
Rafca spent the last seventeen years of her life
in this convent which was to be the scene of her
greatest sufferings, as well as of her greatest
spiritual joys.
Rafca was not to disappoint
Mother Ursula. Her example and assistance proved
invaluable in establishing the new convent. The
novices especially were impressed with the blind
nun's spirit of prayer, humility, and charity.
Many years later, after her death, several of
Rafca's sisters who had either come with her to
the new foundation, or who had been novices
during the seventeen years that she lived at St.
Joseph Ad-Daher and had never forgotten what
they had observed of their sister's life,
testified regarding her holiness...
...Rafca
suffered for seventeen years as a blind
paralytic. Only God knew how much she had to
endure. Her pain was continuous night and day,
yet the other sisters never heard her murmuring
or complaining. She often told them that she
thanked God for her sufferings, "...because I
know that the sickness I have is for the good of
my soul and His glory" and that "the sickness
accepted with patience and thanksgiving purifies
the soul as the fire purifies gold."
She was
always quiet and calm, smiling, enduring even
the greatest pain with patience, hoping in the
Lord who promised to increase the glory of His
faithful servants in heaven (Lk. 21:19).
By
her patience, she can be compared to the
greatest of the saints.
A few years
before she died, Rafca's Bridegroom granted her
two more favors to show His acceptance of her
offering of herself as a Victim of Love.
One
day, mother Ursula noticed that Rafca seemed to
be suffering much more than usual and, touched
by pity for the poor sister, asked her, Is there
anything else you want from this world? Have you
never regretted the loss of your sight? Don't
you sometimes wish you could see this new
convent with all the natural beauties that
surround it--the mountains and rocks, and the
forests?"
Sister Rafca answered simply, "I
would like to see just for an hour, Mother--just
to be able to see you."
"Only for one hour?"
asked the Superior. "And you would be content to
return to that world of darkness?"
"Yes,"
replied the invalid.
Mother Ursula shook her
head in wonder and began to leave Rafca's cell.
Suddenly, the paralyzed nun's face broke into a
beautiful smile and she turned her head toward
the door. "Mother," she called, I can see you!"
The Superior turned around quickly and saw
the glow on Rafca's face. That alone was enough
to tell her that her daughter was not teasing,
but she wanted to be certain that the phenomenon
was actual and not just a trick of the mind of
the poor nun who had been blind for so many
years.
Desperately trying to conceal her
emotions, she walked back to the bedside.
"If it is as you say," she queried, "tell me
what is lying on the wardrobe." Sister Rafca
turned her face toward the little closet and
answered, "The Bible and the Lives of the
Saints--she could hardly contain her excitement.
But, she reasoned, perhaps Rafca knew that these
were the only two books in her cell as she had
no need for others and the sisters who read to
her usually only used these two titles--knowing
that the invalid loved them best.
Another
test would have to be tried and this time,
witnesses were called in the testify to the
miracle.
There was a lovely multi-colored
cover on Rafca's bed. Mother Ursula called her
attention to it and began to point to the colors
one by one, asking the newly-sighted nun to call
out the names of the colors as she pointed to
them. The three sisters who assisted the
Superior in the test verified that Sister Rafca
named each color correctly.
As she had
requested, though, this new sight lasted only
for one hour during which time she conversed
with Mother Ursula and looked around her cell,
at her siters, and through the window to catch
glimpses of the beauties outside.
After this
time, she fell into a peaceful sleep. The Mother
Superior remained at Rafca's side for a short
time and then decided to waken the nun to see if
she would be able to see again...
Link
: http://www.rafca.org/
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| Life of Saint
Hardini |
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Father Hardini was
born Joseph Kassab in the year 1808. His father
was George Kassab and his mother Marium Raad,
daughter of Reverend Yousef Yacoub. He had four
brothers and two sisters, his brothers were
'Assaf, Elias, Tanious, Yacoub and his sisters
Masihieh and Mariam. Joseph's brother Elias
became Father Lesha', the Hermit at Qozhaya, and
later at 'Annaya where he died. Father Charbel
replaced the late Father Lesha' at the hermitage
in 'Annaya. Joseph entered the school of the
monks of St. Anthony at Houb from 1816 to 1822
and then entered the monastery of St. Anthony
Ishaia and became a novice on November 1828.
There he adopted the name Fr. Nimatullah Kassab
Hardini, then he learned to bind books.
He
professed his first vows on 14th of November
1830. After he finished his theological studies,
he was ordained a priest under Bishop Seiman
Zwain in the monastery at Kfifan on 25th of
December 1833.
He became a member of the
general council three times from 1845 to 1848,
1850 to 1853, 1856 to 1858. As a member of the
council he continued to bind books. He taught in
monastic schools, especially in Kfifan.
Father Nimatullah lived a very holy life. He
was a man of prayer, totally "enraptured by
God". He spent days and nights in meditation,
prayer and adoration of the Eucharist. The
Virgin Mary was his patron and Father Nimatullah
prayed Her Rosary. He was also a very humble,
sensitive and patient person who lived his
monastic vows of "obedience, chastity and
poverty" to perfection. His fellow brother Monks
and the people who knew him called him "The
Saint" while he was still alive. One of his
students was Charbel Makhlouf (St. Charbel),
1853 to 1858.
Father Nimatullah Hardini died
in the monastery of Kfifan on 14th December
1858. He passed away after struggling ten days
with a high fever which he contracted from the
cold winter wind characteristic of northern
Lebanon. He was only then fifty years of age. He
died holding a picture of the Virgin Mary, his
last words being: "O Virgin Mary between your
hands I submit my soul." People who were nearby
at the moment of Father Nimatullah's death
witnessed a heavenly light illuminating his room
and an aromatic smell which remained in his room
for a number of days afterwards. When the then
Patriarch, Boulos Massad, heard of Father
Nimatullah's death he commented:
"Congratulations to this monk who knew how to
benefit from his monastic life."
Some time
later, the Monks opened Father Nimatullah's tomb
and to their surprise they found his body had
remained incorrupt. He was then removed and
placed in a coffin near the church. After
obtaining due permission from the local
ecclesiastical authority, from 1864 visitors
were allowed to see Father Neemtallah's intact
body until 1927. In that same year the Committee
of Inquiry set up to investigate the Cause of
Father Nimatullah finalised its investigation.
Father Nimatullah's body was then reburied in
the curving wall of his monastic cell, before
being transferred to a little Chapel where
masses are celebrated for visitors.
He was
declared Venerable on September 7, 1989. At the
behest of his Beatitude Patriarch Nasrallah
Peter Sfeir, his body was examined and placed in
a new coffin on May 18, 1996. His body was
recently transferred to a new coffin made of
cedar and placed in the Monastery of Kfifan
where people may visit.
Several cures have
taken place through his intercession. These
include the raising to life of a Muslim child
whose mother claimed had died, the healing of a
person with a neurological disease, the
restoration of sight to a blind person and the
curing of a person suffering from cancer.
The case of the curing of Andre Najm is of
particular note due to its very recent occurance
and thourough investigation by the international
medical community that followed. Andre Najm,
born on October 29, 1966 enjoyed excellent
health for the first twenty years of his life.
However in June of 1986 he began to experience a
chronic fatigue and nervous breakdowns, unable
to even walk a short distance. Many physicians
in Lebanon and abroad treated him to no avail.
He was suffering from a form of blood cancer and
required frequent blood transfusions.
Link
: http://www.hardini.org/
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