Saint of the day - St Charbel - July 24th

       We celebrate the feast day of a Lebanese priest today named St Charbel Makhluf. We have a lot of Lebanese in our Diocese of Jackson, and one of my good buddies in seminary is Lebanese, so in a special we I think of St Charbel today.   He was born in a small village in Lebanon in 1828 to a very humble family.  His father, a mule driver, died when he was 3, so he was raised by an uncle.  He entered the Monastery of St Maron in Lebanon and was ordained a priest.   For the last 23 years of his life, he lived as a hermit in the desert where he practiced a life of strict fasting and of strong devotion to the Blessed Sacrament.  People sought him out for his prayers due to his reputation for holiness.   The life of a hermit is challenging, disciplined, and austere; it is not a life that draws everyone.  But God calles us different way, just as he calls some to the life of a monk or a hermit.  May God's calling, and his life and mercy, call out to us today.