1859, in Bkerke. He was sent back to the Monastery of Saint Maron, where he lived a life of severe asceticism. Eremitical life In 1875, Charbel was granted by the abbot of the monastery the privilege of living as a hermit at the Hermitage of Saints Peter and Paul, a chapel under the care of the monastery. He spent the next 23 years living alone until his death from a stroke on December 24, 1898.<ref>Hovannisian, R & Sabagh, G.; Religion and culture in medieval Islam', Cambridge University Press, 1999, p113</ref> Death and relics Makhlouf was interred at the Monastery of Saint Maron on Christmas Day that year. It was reported that during the transport of his corpse, inclement weather conditions hindered the pallbearers in carrying out their duty. "Father Charbel died on the eve of Christmas; the snow was heavy. We transferred him to the monastery on Christmas day. Before we moved him, the snow was falling rapidly and the clouds were very dark. When we carried him, the clouds disappeared, and the weather cleared." – George Emmanuel Abi-Saseen, one of the pallbearers One story claims: "A few months after his death, a bright light was seen surrounding his tomb and the superiors opened it to find his body still intact. After that day, a blood-like liquid flowed from his body. Experts and doctors were unable to give medical explanations for the incorruptibility and flexibility." In 1950 and 1952, his tomb was opened and his body still had the appearance of a living one. Additionally, the 1950 television tape of his exhumation showed Makhlouf's body as still intact, despite the grave having become severely rusty. The official site mentions: In this century his grave has been opened four times, the last time being in 1955, and each time "it has been noticed that his bleeding body still has its flexibility as if it were alive”. The Catholic Tradition website says: "Father Joseph Mahfouz, the postulator of the cause, certified that in 1965 the body of Saint Charbel was still preserved intact with no alteration. In 1976, he again witnessed the opening of the grave; this time the body was completely decomposed. Only the skeleton remained." On 2 September 2017, Saint Charbel's relics were translated to Saint Elisabeth Cathedral in Košice, Slovakia, where a monthly pilgrimage is held, called "Púť k sv. Šarbelovi" (Pilgrimage to St. Charbel). The cathedral is the