Annaya Monastery
On a forested hillside in the mountains above Byblos, a monastery sits quietly among the pine and oak trees. This is the Monastery of Saint Maron in Annaya, one of the most visited pilgrimage sites in the Middle East. Over two million people come here each year, drawn by the story of a monk who lived in near-total silence for decades and whose body, more than a century after his death, has never fully decomposed.
The monk was Youssef Antoun Makhlouf, known to the world as Saint Charbel. He entered this monastery in 1853 as a young man of twenty-three. He would spend the rest of his life within its walls and in the nearby hermitage, praying, fasting, and working the land. He spoke little. He wrote nothing. And yet his influence, beginning only after his death, has reached millions of people across every continent.
Annaya is not a grand cathedral or an ancient ruin. It is a working monastery where monks still rise before dawn to pray. The buildings are simple. The landscape is beautiful but not dramatic. What draws people here is something harder to define: a sense that the silence Charbel cultivated during his lifetime still lingers in the stone, the chapel, and the mountain air.
History of the Monastery
The Monastery of Saint Maron in Annaya was founded in 1828 by monks of the Lebanese Maronite Order (Ordre Libanais Maronite, or OLM). The Order itself dates to 1695, when it was established as a monastic congregation within the Maronite Church, dedicated to prayer, manual labor, and community life in the tradition of the Desert Fathers.
The site chosen for the monastery was a wooded hillside in the village of Annaya, part of the Jbeil (Byblos) district of Mount Lebanon. The location was remote but not isolated. The ancient port city of Byblos lay below on the coast, and the mountain villages of the region were home to a deeply rooted Maronite population.
The monastery was named for Saint Maron, the 4th-century hermit monk whose followers formed the Maronite Church. In its early decades, the monastery was a modest establishment. The monks lived simply, cultivating the surrounding land, tending orchards and vineyards, and following a strict daily rhythm of prayer and work.
By the mid-19th century, the monastery had grown into a stable community with a church, living quarters, and agricultural buildings. It was during this period that a young novice from the village of Bekaa Kafra arrived at the gates. His name was Youssef Antoun Makhlouf. He would transform this quiet monastery into one of the most important pilgrimage destinations in the Christian world.
Saint Charbel at Annaya
Charbel entered the Monastery of Saint Maron in 1853, at the age of twenty-three. He had already spent two years as a novice at the Monastery of Our Lady of Mayfouq, another OLM community in the mountains. At Annaya, he took his monastic vows and was ordained a priest in 1859.
For the next sixteen years, Charbel lived the communal life of the monastery. He celebrated Mass daily, joined the community for the Liturgy of the Hours, and worked in the fields. He was known for his obedience, his long hours of prayer, and his indifference to comfort. He ate once a day. He slept on the ground. He owned nothing beyond his habit and his breviary.
In 1875, Charbel received permission to withdraw to the Hermitage of Saints Peter and Paul, a small stone building attached to the monastery but set apart from the community. There he would live as a hermit for the remaining twenty-three years of his life.
The hermit's life was austere even by monastic standards. Charbel followed a strict routine: prayer before dawn, Mass at the hermitage chapel, hours of contemplation, and manual labor in the garden. He rarely spoke. Visitors came to ask for his prayers, but he offered no sermons, no spiritual direction, no writings. His witness was his life itself.
On December 16, 1898, while celebrating Mass, Charbel suffered a stroke during the elevation of the Eucharist. He lingered for eight days, dying on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1898. He was sixty-eight years old. The monks buried him in the monastery cemetery according to the custom of the Order, without a coffin, his body placed directly in the earth.
The Hermitage of Saints Peter and Paul
The hermitage stands a short walk from the main monastery, on a wooded slope overlooking the valley. It is a small, plain building: a chapel, a cell, and a small garden enclosed by a low stone wall. There is nothing ornate about it. The simplicity is the point.
The hermitage was built in the early 19th century as a place of deeper solitude for monks who, after years of community life, felt called to the eremitic vocation. In the Maronite monastic tradition, the hermit's life is considered the highest form of consecrated life. It is not a rejection of community but a progression beyond it, a stripping away of everything that is not prayer.
Charbel lived here from 1875 to 1898. His cell was tiny, with a wooden bed, a small table, and an oil lamp. The chapel where he celebrated Mass each morning is scarcely larger than a room in a house. The garden where he worked, growing vegetables and tending fruit trees, slopes gently toward the valley below.
Today, the hermitage is preserved much as it was during Charbel's lifetime. Visitors can enter the chapel and see the cell where he slept. The atmosphere is striking in its quietness. Even on busy pilgrimage days, the hermitage retains a stillness that the main monastery, with its crowds and gift shops, sometimes lacks.
The Tomb and the Miracles
What happened after Charbel's burial is what made Annaya famous. In the weeks following his death, monks and villagers reported seeing a bright light emanating from his grave in the monastery cemetery. The accounts were persistent enough that the monastery superiors ordered the grave opened.
When the body was exhumed, it was found intact. The limbs were flexible. A reddish, oil-like substance was seeping from the pores of the skin. The body showed no signs of the decomposition that would normally be far advanced after weeks of burial in damp mountain soil without a coffin.
The body was moved to a wooden coffin and placed in a chapel within the monastery. Over the following decades, it was examined multiple times by ecclesiastical authorities and medical professionals. Each examination confirmed that the body remained in an unusual state of preservation, and that the oil-like substance continued to seep from the skin.
Reports of miracles began almost immediately. Pilgrims who visited the tomb or applied the oil to their bodies reported healings. The cases were numerous and varied: paralysis, blindness, tumors, wounds that would not close. The Maronite Church and later the Vatican investigated many of these claims as part of the formal canonization process.
Two miracles were officially recognized by Rome. The first involved a woman named Mariam Awad, partially paralyzed since 1936, who reported a complete recovery after praying at Charbel's tomb in 1950. The second concerned Iskandar Obeid, who suffered from a severe throat condition and was healed after a novena to Saint Charbel. These two cases, after rigorous medical and theological examination, satisfied the requirements for beatification (1965) and canonization (1977) by Pope Paul VI.
Today, the walls of the chapel housing Charbel's tomb are lined with crutches, braces, and handwritten letters left by pilgrims who believe they were healed through his intercession. The monastery receives thousands of such testimonies each year from people of all faiths and backgrounds.
Visiting Annaya Today
The Monastery of Saint Maron in Annaya is located in the Jbeil district of Mount Lebanon, approximately 70 kilometers north of Beirut. The monastery sits at an altitude of about 1,200 meters, surrounded by pine and oak forests.
Getting there: From Beirut, take the coastal highway north to Jbeil (Byblos), then follow the mountain road inland and uphill to Annaya. The drive takes roughly 90 minutes. The road is paved and well-maintained. There is no regular public transport to the monastery, so most visitors drive or hire a taxi. Parking is available at the monastery grounds.
What to see: The main monastery church, where Mass is celebrated daily in the Maronite rite. The tomb chapel of Saint Charbel, located within the monastery complex. The Hermitage of Saints Peter and Paul, a short walk from the main buildings. A small museum displaying artifacts from Charbel's life, including his vestments and personal belongings. The monastery gardens and the surrounding walking paths through the forest.
Hours and access: The monastery is open to visitors daily, year-round. There is no entrance fee. Mass times are posted at the church entrance. The hermitage is generally accessible during daylight hours. Modest dress is expected, as this is an active place of worship.
Best time to visit: Spring (April and May) and autumn (September and October) offer the most pleasant weather. Summers can be warm but are cooler than the coast due to the altitude. Winters bring occasional snow. The feast of Saint Charbel on the third Sunday of July draws the largest crowds. December 24, the anniversary of his death, is another major pilgrimage day.
Combining your visit: Annaya pairs well with a visit to the ancient city of Byblos (Jbeil), one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, located on the coast below. The Qadisha Valley, another important Maronite pilgrimage site, is about two hours north by car.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Annaya monastery located?
The Monastery of Saint Maron in Annaya is in the Jbeil (Byblos) district of Mount Lebanon, approximately 70 kilometers north of Beirut. It sits at about 1,200 meters altitude on a forested mountainside above the Mediterranean coast. The nearest major town is Jbeil (Byblos), the ancient Phoenician port city on the coast below.
Can you visit Saint Charbel's tomb?
Yes. Saint Charbel's tomb is located in a chapel within the Monastery of Saint Maron in Annaya and is open to all visitors daily. There is no entrance fee. The chapel is accessible year-round, and you do not need to be Catholic or Christian to visit. Mass is celebrated regularly in the monastery church, and visitors are welcome to attend.
What happened to Saint Charbel's body after death?
After Charbel's burial on December 24, 1898, monks reported a bright light coming from his grave. When the body was exhumed weeks later, it was found intact and flexible, with a blood-like oil seeping from the skin. The body was examined multiple times over the following decades, each time found in an unusual state of preservation. This phenomenon was a key factor in his beatification by Pope Paul VI in 1965 and his canonization in 1977.
How do I get to Annaya from Beirut?
Drive north from Beirut on the coastal highway to Jbeil (Byblos), then take the mountain road inland to Annaya. The journey is about 70 kilometers and takes roughly 90 minutes by car. There is no regular public transport to the monastery, so you will need to drive, hire a taxi, or join an organized tour. The road is paved and well-maintained throughout.
Is Annaya monastery still active?
Yes. The Monastery of Saint Maron in Annaya is an active monastery of the Lebanese Maronite Order. Monks live there, following the daily rhythm of prayer and work that has defined the community since its founding in 1828. The monastery also operates a retreat center and welcomes pilgrims. Over two million people visit Annaya each year, making it one of the most visited Christian pilgrimage sites in the Middle East.
See also: Saint Charbel Makhlouf, the hermit monk of Annaya. Qadisha Valley, the holy valley of the Maronite monks. Novena to Saint Charbel. Learn more about the Maronite tradition.