Screenplay by Mounir Maasri

Quick Facts

Released in 2009
Duration: 1hr46min
Language: Arabic
Film Location: Lebanon

Lebanon – December 16, 1898 – An elderly priest heaves his way to the altar of a small secluded monastery on the majestic hills of Annaya to pray his last sermon before forever dedicating his soul to the miraculous healing of mankind. As he prepares to meet the Lord, Charbel’s entire life parades in his mind’s eye, flashes of memory that tell tales of dedication to Christ, devout inspiration, clairvoyance and wisdom, within a Lebanon torn by Turkish occupation and human suffering.

May 8, 1828: In a small hut perched amidst the hills and meadows of North Lebanon’s serene village of Biqa-Kafra, baby Joseph is born to a family of 5 brothers and sisters. His father, enslaved like many others by the onerous Turkish regime, soon finds his death on the fields of slavery while Joseph was still an infant. His mother soon re-married, Joseph lived with his brothers at their paternal uncle’s home for much of their childhood years. He was to be re-united for a brief moment with his mother at the age of 6.

Joseph grew up an independent child, shepherding, assisting the family, and devoting much of his days to prayer. At 12 years of age, he discovered his recluse at the now sacred cave of Biqa–Kafra, a venue where he sought serenity, a prayer refuge where symbolism has now become a relic of sainthood frequented by hundreds of thousands of believers every year. (more…)