Saint Rafqa  
                                         

Rafqa El-Rayess was born on June 29, 1832 in the small village of Himlaya, one of the northern Metn villages in Lebanon. From early age, Rafqa felt drawn to the religious life.  She entered the convent of Our Lady of Deliverance in Bekfaya and joined the Mariamette Sisters Order. It was on March 19, 1861 that Rafqa received the habit of her congregation and a year later she pronounced her first vows.  She became a nun in the congregation of Saint Mary.

In 1871, when a crisis arose within her congregation, Rafqa prayed and saw in her dream Saint Anthony the Great, father of the monasticism, saying to her "Become a nun in the Lebanese Order." It was then that Rafka decided to become a cloistered nun and joined the Lebanese Maronite Order.  She entered the Maronite Monastery of Saint Simon El-Qarn in Aito receiving the habit on July 12, 1871 and pronouncing her vows on August 25, 1872.  For the next 26 years, she lived and worked at the Monastery of Saint Simon.

In 1885 and on the feast of the Holy Rosary, Rafqa  prayed to Our Lord that He might allow her to share in the suffering of His passion and crucifixion. Her prayer was immediately answered.   From that night on, she suffered excruciating pain in her head that moved to her eyes.  Her health began to deteriorate, yet she rejoiced in being made worthy to participate in the suffering of Our Lord. Undergoing a surgery at the hands of an American doctor without anesthesia, her right eye became completely detached. Instead of panicking, she blessed the doctor saying, "For Christ's passion, God bless your hands and may God repay you." 

For the next 12 years, she suffered unbearable pains and became blind and crippled.  She died on March 23, 1914 at the Monastery of Saint Joseph, Jrebta  and since then, many miracles have been attributed to her intercession.

On November 17, 1985, Saint Pope John Paul II declared her a Blessed.  In the Jubilee year 2000, Saint Pope John Paul II declared her a role model in the adoration of the Eucharist and later on declared her a Saint on June 10, 2001.

Saint Rafqa, pray for us.