Monsignor Samer NASSIF will be visiting the Seattle area and will bring with him First Class Relics of St. Charbel and St. Rafqa. There will be three evenings of celebration and veneration. Each evening will follow the same format.
- Wednesday, August 6 - St. Monica Catholic Church (4311 88th Ave SE, Mercer Island, WA)
- Thursday, August 7 - St. Monica Catholic Church (4311 88th Ave SE, Mercer Island, WA)
- Friday, August 8 - Holy Family Catholic Church (7045 120th Ave NE, Kirkland, WA)
Each evening’s celebration will begin at 5:30PM, and will likely last 3 hours or longer. The celebration will include:
- Eucharistic Adoration
- Recitation of the Holy Rosary (with meditation guided by readings from the writings of St. Charbel)
- Celebration of a Holy Mass in honor of St. Charbel
- Anointing with the Oil of St. Charbel
- Veneration of the Relics of St. Charbel and St. Rafqa
With any questions, please email communication@stmonicami.org.
List of Services
Who is St. Charbel?
Saint Charbel Makhlouf was born on May 8, 1828, in Bkaakafra, a village of Northern Lebanon. From a young age he felt called to become a monk. In 1851, he joined the Lebanese Maronite Order, and in 1859 was ordained to the priesthood. After living in monastic community for 16 years, he requested permission from his superiors to become a hermit and live an ascetic life of prayer, worship, and physical labor. He died on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1898. His body was later exhumed from his tomb and found to be incorruptible. He was declared Blessed on January 5, 1965, and a Saint on October 9, 1977, by Pope Paul VI.
Who is St. Rafqa?
Saint Rafqa was born on June 29, 1832 in Himlaya, a village of Northern Metn (in Lebanon). She began religious life in the Congregation of the Mariamettes and later became a nun in the Lebanese Maronite Order. Sister Rafqa was a virtuous role model to the other nuns. After praying to experience some of the suffering which Christ endured during His Passion, Rafqa was given a life of intense physical pain. She faithfully united these sufferings to Christ's own and bore these trials for 29 years. She died on March 23, 1914. She declared Venerable on February 11, 1982, Blessed on November 17, 1985, and a Saint on June 10, 2001, by Pope Saint John Paul II.
