Blessed Estephan Joking!

Father Maroun Karam Al Tannoury testified about Blessed Estephan saying:” When the Vatican interfered in the Maronite Order in 1938 and appointed father Bassil ghanem as superior general, there was a complete chaos inside the order, and the news became the talk of the day between the monks, as some were happy and surprised, others were sad but obedient. The reason for such chaos goes back to the fact that the position of superior general of the maronite order was for the last 25 years exclusively held by people from the village of tannourine. In fact from 1913 until 1929, the superior general was the man of God: abbot Aghnatios Dagher from Tannourine and from 1929 until 1938, the superior general was abbot Martinos Tarabay, also from Tannourine.” 

“During that period, printouts against the new superior general filled the corridors of the monastery in jbeil which was the quarters of the superior general. At that time the stories of the internal segregations within maronites and the sentiments of belonging to a particular area or village was also very common, just as our present days. In fact, the title of “Tannoury” was affected to religious from the village of Tannourine, and the title of “Lehfedi” was affected to religious from the village of Lehfed. And these segregations throughout the history of the maronites have created among people permanent and strong feelings of belonging to a particular area or village.” 

Monastery of Our Lady of Succor (Al Maonat) at the time of
Blessed Estephan

“Brother Estephan was a very ordinary monk, undistinguished at all from his brothers, having the virtues of sainthood. But his brothers never referred to him as a saint, as he was rather a very joyful and funny person. I was one of the best friends of Brother Estephan and we used to go to sleep in Kfarsyadah whenever there was a shortage of places at the monastery of Our Lady of Succor (Al Maonat), as it was home for a large number of people like monks from the general Directorate, monks of the monastery itself and the brothers who were still students.” 

“After the changes at the level of the superior general due to the intervention from the Vatican, I was a little bit upset since that the superior general who was stepping down was originating from my native town: Tannourine. Brother Estephan composed a few verses of Lebanese traditional prose (zejel) as a satirical grief and joke about the loss of the village of Tannourine of the most prestigious position at the maronite order, after having held it for a quarter of a century. As the atmosphere was already tense, I thought that brother Estephan was serious in what he was saying, and I asked him sadly: brother Estephan how could you say something like that to me! You are a monk! He answered with his usual smile and said: Forgive me I was joking.”

"I Shall Reach Heaven Before you"

Blessed Estephan Nehme enjoyed the virtue of quietness which has always been a much appreciated asset for a monk. He rarely spoke, and when he did he only said the necessary words with a great deal of reflection. His voice was always low. 

Blessed Brother Estephan Nehme

There was a priest called father Estephan who knew Blessed Estephan Nehme pretty well and he witnessed about him saying: “nobody ever heard any hurtful word or lie from him. If he was ever angry with someone he said: ‘your devil burn in hell’, and I heard this word from him many times. Once I asked him: brother and teacher Estephan did the devil do anything wrong to you that you always burn it in hell? He answered me nicely with a smile and said: am I burning it? It will be burning in hell anyway!” 

He used to welcome his brothers the monks warmly with a deep fraternity, and he always had a smiley face and was cheerful, nobody ever witnessed him being angry. He always accepted happily the advices and opinions from his superiors with calmness. He always made people who meet him smile, and everyone who dealt with him was extremely pleased. 

Blessed Estephan was also much appreciated and loved by his brothers the monks and he was very close to them. He never hesitated to help and assist anyone who asked him, and joked nicely with them and they also joked often with him. 

On the eve of the ordainment of the man of God father Youssef Kairuz a priest, he came to brother Estephan joking and said to him:”brother Estephan, this is the last night that you can call me brother, tomorrow I shall become a priest and be more important than you” but brother Estephan answered him also with a joke saying:” do you think that priests can reach heaven before brothers? I shall reach heaven before you.”

Blessed Estephan's Prayer

Blessed Estephan was a good and pious monk, he prayed and meditated a lot, he was like an angel in the skin of a human, committed to prayer and to the adoration of the Holy Eucharist. He was in a state of continuous prayer, even when he was silent it was obvious that he was praying quietly. He repeated all day long the expression:”God can see me”. He was the first to enter the church for prayer and the last one to leave it, he always attended the morning and evening prayers with the believers without hesitation.

Whenever the priests and the students gathered at the church around the wooden pulpit, that he has made, to recite a liturgical office, brother Estephan knelt down on the floor to participate to the prayer.

Blessed Estephan was fulfilled with God’s graces, he was constantly praising and giving thanks to the Lord for everything, he prayed the very old and famous maronite hymn for the Virgin Mary: “O mother of God”. Father Youssef El Khoury testified:”It was very touching to hear his tender and lovely voice singing this prayer especially when he said: Intercede for us O Virgin.”

Statue of the virgin Mary at the monastery of Kfifane

Brother Charbel Nehme testified about him saying:”I came to the monastery of kfifane around the period of his last days and I worked with him, he encouraged me to become a monk. He was taking care of the cultivation of the summer vegetables like tomatoe, cucumber and others. He was alone at this task and worked hardly. He often prayed joyfully to the sacred heart of Jesus while working and he used to get caught by another world, he often took some time to respond whenever I called him.”

Memories of the War

Father Estephan Farhat Al Jaji testified about Blessed Estephan saying: "I met again with brother Estephan at the monastery of Saint Antonios Houb, upon the end of the First World War. Students were coming back to resume their studies at the school of our Lady of Succor (Al Maonat), and in summer time they used to join the different monasteries in the mountains for the same purpose. I was appointed by lot to the monastery of Houb at the time of the mandate of the Superior father Nehmetallah Al Lehfedy, and brother Estephan was a chief of field at that time".

Monastery of Saint Antonios Houb, between the mountains

"It was natural for me to become more attached to brother Estephan especially after our old days together at the monastery of Our Lady of Mayfouq. I did not leave any available opportunity to find him and sit with him, especially in the barn which was far away from the monastery. We often spoke about the war and the dramatic implications it had on Lebanon and on the Lebanese people who died in big numbers from starvation, we remembered father Antonios Nehme the Superior of the monastery of Mayfouq, his pain and hard work and dangerous trips to Akkar, Homs, Hamah, trying desperately to find food and bring it with him for the monks and the workers and all the poor families that were living around the monastery."

"At those difficult times the doors of the monastery remained open for all, and the different photos at the reception of the monastery of Mayfouq which were taken at the courtyard of the monastery, are a witness of the big number of people who were depending on the monastery for their food. Brother Estephan and the other monks used to distribute food generously and lovingly on hungry and poor people."

Merciful and Loving

At the time of Brother Estephan, the Monastery of Mayfouq was hosting 73 monks. When anyone of them crossed Brother Estephan, he embraced him with respect and love, because every night after his return from the field, Estephan visited all of them in their rooms and checked on them with love, and took care of the necessities of the eldest among them. And if he ever heard any monk speaking badly about any of his brothers, he left immediately with sadness.

Monastery of Our Lady of Mayfouq

One of the workers at the monastery of Kfifane testified:” I was a fourteen years old young man working on the land with the pick behind the ox, as oxen usually leave undone parts of land especially near walls, trees and vines. As I was still young my hands were not used to this kind of long and hard work, my palms cracked and blood came out. When Brother Estephan saw me he felt pity for me and said:”O Dear” and made me stop working and brought a special kind of herbs known for healing wounds and took care of my wounds. When he finished he said to me:”stop working with the pick, go and collect some stones” and this kind of work was a lot easier for me.”

Brother Estephan was very merciful to the workers and laborers who came to him to repair the agricultural tools: plows, yokes, forks, picks and others, he always made the necessary repairs for them with great pleasure and always talked to them nicely but with decency and a lot of respect.

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I Was Hungry and You Gave Me Food

From Estephan the Monk.

Brother Estephan, the Gospel lover, understood pretty well that Christian love does not ask for a reward or for a price to be given in full. That is why all his life was full of love, care and tenderness especially for the less fortunate and the poor. He always gave his food to the poor and was a loving person to everyone. He never offended nor embarrassed anyone with any single word, and he was loved by all the laborers who worked with him and he always gave them advices and guidance. He had an easy going character with the laborers, he was loving and merciful to them, never forced them to hardship, always rushed to help them when they failed to accomplish their job, and always helped them and supported them without being rude to any worker, he never hurt anyone of them that is why they liked him a lot. He was very close to his laborers but always kept the appropriate distance with them. 

Brother Estephan was extremely nice with everybody and people felt a great contentment when dealing with him, he never offended anyone in his life. He had a great sense of hospitality and was tender, humble, loving and close to one’s heart. His Brothers often testified about the sympathy he showed for them and for their problems, and his carefulness about their interests. He often said to the workers Brothers at the Maronite Order:”The priests monks serve Jesus with love after having received a high level of education, as for us workers Brothers, we serve God with our love and monastic devotion and this is what is important".

Monastery of Our Lady of Mayfouq

Upon the First World War, a great famine took place in Lebanon, which caused the death of one third of the population. The Monastery of Mayfouq then reduced the allowed bread consumption for the monks in those dark days. Brother Estephan used to eat only one loaf of bread during the whole day and gave his remaining share to the poor and hungry. Once while he was carrying some food to a starving family, he found the little infant breastfeeding from his dead mother. Estephan was deeply moved by the scene, he carried the baby and took him to the field and took care of him along with other miserable children and fed him milk from the cow. He kept them under his protection until the end of the war.

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Giving His Lunch To The Poor

Father Boutros Zahra testified: ”On several occasions I brought lunch for Brother Estephan to the field where he was working. When the bell of the Monastery rang, he knelt down and recited the Angelus prayer then he called the workers and laborers to lunch and ordered them to pray before starting to eat. He often left his lunch for the laborers who were poor or less fortunate than others, and went aside to pray alone. He returned to work and cultivated the land on the oxen by himself most of the times”.

The Church at the Monastery of
Our Lady of Succor (Al Maonat), Jbeil

One of the laborers spoke about his story with Brother Estephan: ”I was working with him once at the field of the Monastery in Kfifane, he noticed that I did not bring with me any food for the day, and our work was very demanding and hard as we used to work from six in the morning till four in the afternoon, and it was nearly impossible to stay without any food for the whole day. I was very poor and I came to work on that day without anything to eat, so he gave me his lunch, I refused to take it and told him :”no Sir I don’t want to eat” but he insisted and gave it to me, and he went and collected some green herbs and ate it with a piece of bread. This happened many times.”

When Brother Estephan was at the Monastery of Our Lady of Succor (Al Maonat), there was a road leading to the Monastery that was being excavated and built. Along the road way one of the retaining walls at the middle of a turning has collapsed for three consecutive times. Brother Estephan interfered and told the Superior:”Father, the wall can hold but the builder needs to adjust the layers of stone correctly, give me workers, if they listen to me I can build it for you and I guarantee you that it will not fall”. Then Brother Estephan arrived to the site, he demolished the old wall, made a new deep excavation and built it all again correctly. The Wall still holds today. The Superior and Vicars General thanked Brother Estephan and they made a celebration meal for him, as the previous collapses of that wall have caused injuries for four people.

Father Michael El Khoury testified: ”I was with Brother Estephan at the Monastery of Al Maonat for four years, from 1931 to 1935. We used to work for a couple of hours each Thursday then leave for Kfarsyaadeh where he was working on the land, taking care of the banana, orange and olive trees with the laborers. His hands were graceful on the land and the crops were overflowing. We helped him at work, collected stones and tore off the grass, he used to knot a handkerchief around his head to protect him from the sun. After work we sat together at his place and he told us stories about monks who were famous for their holiness like Charbel, Rafqa and Al Hardini, and the hermits of the Maronite Order, he told us about their lives and works, then afterwards he said:”now it’s time for the rosary”, and after the prayer we returned back to the Monastery.”

A Deep Humbleness

From Estephan The Monk

Brother Estephan was very peaceful, he never got involved in disputes, he was always very content, and the state of grace was always shown on his face. He was an expert in field works, but never liked to be considered as responsible or chief, and he always asked for advice from his superiors and his brothers. In winter he used to spend his days in the carpentry workshop, he had a very strong body as he was able to bend a steel rod or straighten it with his hands only, and he used to deny this fact humbly if he was asked about it.

Brother Semaan Lehfed witnessed:” I stayed with Brother Estephan in the same room in a farm at 'Kfarsyadeh' related to the Monastery of Our Lady Of Succor (Al Maonat), he noticed one day that he was depriving me of sleep because he used to snore while asleep, so he apologized to me gently and made up a small room adjacent to mine. I wanted to move to this new small room and let him feel comfortable alone, but he did not accept and he moved his mattress to it and lived quietly”.

The Church of the Monastery of Our Lady of Succor (Al Maonat) Jbeil,
at the time of Blessed Brother Estephan

Everybody who knew Brother Estephan agree that he had a strong body, was very healthy, dedicated to his work, a skilled and experienced carpenter. He used to manufacture rails for cultivation, yokes for the oxen, windows and doors, he used to repair the tools for the field and was also a skilled wall builder. But most of his works were at the field as he cultivated the lands on oxen and he was called “chief of the field”, he was responsible for the lands of the monastery, he worked on the lands and cultivated them to provide enough provisions for the whole year, so that the monastery won't have to buy any provisions all year long.

He always worked hard for the good of the Monastery, he preserved the lands and tired himself continuously to look after the fields. He always prayed while he worked, never distracted himself, and he was either at church praying or working. He was the enemy of joblessness, his life was full of energy and hard work.

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The Scent Of Jesus!

From Estephan the monk

Brother Estephan was revered and very respected by everyone, people admired his righteousness and his true piety, and the exceptional virtues that he had. With his charming character, everybody loved him for what he represented. Superiors used to compete between themselves to have him in their monasteries, as a joy for the convent. He was the exemplary monk for the people of the monastery, including the fathers and brothers, he was the lighthouse for the workers, and the example to follow for everyone else with his good behavior. Everybody spoke about the holiness of his soul, and if he ever heard an unnecessary or bad discussion he showed his displeasure on his face, and the discussion would end immediately out of respect for him.

Monastery of Kfifane, where Blessed Brother Estephan
spent most of his monastic life

Beshara Nehme witnessed:” I first met him when he was a student at the institute of Our Lady of Mayfouq, at church he was a living example of faith and of the spirit of piety to anyone who looked at him, especially for us children”.

His nephew witnessed:”when we were young men, sometimes we used to meet with him, and we always saw in him the good example. The good news that we used to hear about him from the Maronite Order, were like the perfume of the Christ that was scented everywhere”.

His nephew the priest Boulos witnessed:”my uncle made me want to be pious, and he was the one who encouraged me to the priesthood and gave me the good example. I used to see in him the Christ with his humbleness and meekness”.

His niece, Sister Marina witnessed:”Every time I saw him he lectured me about ethics and good behaviors and he said to me: “beware my daughter, a girl is like glass, if she is damaged she will fade. Preserve your religious duties and keep away from the unethical manners of the girls of this generation, and do not follow fashion”. He made me want the religious order with his love and wisdom, as I never dreamt to join the monastery. He proceeded to ask for an acceptance for me to join the monastery, but his early death didn’t let him finish the job, so I blamed my luck! But on one night I saw my uncle Brother Estephan and he said to me:”do not be scared, I did not die, I’m alive!” so I told him: what about my vocation? He answered: “do not be scared, leave it to God and all will be fine”. On the next day I was granted the acceptance and I joined the monastery”.

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Blessed Brother Estephan Nehme's Daily Activities

From Estephan the Monk

Brother Estephan used to wake up very early in the morning for the holy mass, after receiving the holy Eucharist he used to have a time of meditation, then a morning prayer with the believers. After that, he used to prepare the necessary tools for the work in the fields with the laborers.

Monastery of Our Lady of Succor (Al Maonat) Jbeil, where brother
Estephan used to be the chief of the field

They used to walk the oxen by couples on the way to the land for cultivation, Estephan followed them to the work place with the chaplet in hand praying the rosary. Once on site, he used to put his rosary on a large rock, spread the seed over the land for them to begin their work, and went back to his chaplet to continue his prayer, while watching carefully all the laborers on the field. At noon he sits with the workers to have lunch, then afterwards he spreads again the seed over another portion of land for them to continue their work, while he goes back again to prayer till the end of the day.

After the end of the day in the field, the workers gather all the tools and walk the oxen back, while Estephan follows them praying his rosary. When they reach the monastery the workers take the oxen to feed them while Estephan goes to the church, which he never leaves before supper time, after supper he goes again to the church and stays late in the night. This was his daily life all year long when he was in charge of the lands and fields of the monastery.

According to a witness: “He was always ready early in the morning sometimes before dawn, preparing the oxen and waiting for the workers to show up, while praying his rosary. We used to begin our day with him by the prayer of the Angelus with Estephan on his knees. While we worked on the soil, He often carried stones and built walls, reaped the wheat and collected it, and carried alone a large and full bag to the mill, while we sat down under the oak tree eating the fresh fruits that he has collected for us. When the noon bell rings he used to stop his work, kneel down wherever he was standing, even on rocks, and recite the Angelus. At the end of the day we used to pray the Angelus again, in the same way that we have started our day”.

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Permanent Peace

Brother Estephan was known to be meek, calm and serene, he never got angry but was always patient, kind and merciful with everyone. His life was very organized, he never complained about people, food or any other matter. He always followed Jesus words:” blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God”. He loved peace and hated disputes between people, he used to interfere quickly to resolve any argument using his wisdom and experience about things, and restore peace in the hearts.

Monastery of Our Lady of Succor (Al Maonat) Jbeil,
at the time of Brother Estephan

Brother Estephan was the chief of the field belonging to the Monastery of Our Lady of Succor (Al Maonat), and he had cultivators with him working on the land of the monastery. On One occasion, one of the cultivators was yelling and swearing loudly at the ox which was not responding (as oxen usually get used to their master's voice and obey him to go right or left or to stop), so he started to aggress the ox and poke it with a sharp needle, and the ox was becoming more nervous and uncontrollable, and was about to break the yoke.

Brother Estephan used to dismiss any worker who misbehaves or uses any bad words, but on this occasion he came to the cultivator and told him:”Let me handle the ox, go and have some rest”, and he started slowly working on the land again, and the ox obeyed him and returned to normal.

After that the cultivator had a rest for some time and has smoked a cigarette, Brother Estephan called him back to his work, and as the ox has calmed down, he said to him:”Do you see? when you calmed down, so did the ox”. The cultivator thanked him and apologized for his inappropriate words.

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The Chief Of The Field

From Estephan the monk

After his novitiate period, brother Estephan mastered the carpentry job pretty well, to the point that it was said about him that he never lets the handle of the saw to cool. With the carpentry job he spent all his monastic life in the Maronite Order for 31 years, working in the convents and in the fields and vineyards.

Monastery of Saint Artemius (Mar Shallita) Al kattara

During the period from 1907 to 1938 and according to the orders of his Superiors, Brother Estephan moved to several different monasteries: Our Lady of Mayfouq (1907-1910), Saint Antonios Houb (1910-1913), Our Lady of Mayfouq again (1913-1922), Saint Maron Annaya (1922-1925), Saint Artemius (Mar Shallita) Al Kattara (1925-1928), Our Lady of Succour (Al Maonat) Jbeil (1928-1938), and finally Saint Cyprian and Justina Kfifane (1938). All these rotations were a holy trip for him and a constant spiritual evolution from matter to light, by praying, serving, and being attentively silent.

Brother Estephan lived all his life with the freedom of spirit, he knew that whoever sins becomes a slave to sin even if he were a monarch. That’s why he had a clear conscience, never feared anyone with regards to the truth, and his only aim was always to please God. He always interceded for the laborers and workers but also never allowed them to use any bad words. Whoever dared to swear in his presence was immediately fired as he used to give him his daily pay and ask him not to come to work on the next day.

Brother Estephan was the chief of the field of the monastery. There was a man from Jran working on his donkey in the monastery of Kfifane. The assistant brother used to ask the laborer to do additional works for free after the end of the day, and used to tell him: God will compensate you. When brother Estephan knew about it, he came to the laborer and told him:” you are tired from work, and at the end of the day you need to go home to feed your donkey and get some rest and do your homework, I am the chief of the field, don’t listen to the brother if he asks you for an extra work after that you have finished your job for the day”.

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A Hard Worker

From Estephan The Monk.

Brother Estephan was an exemplary monk in observing and abiding by monastic rules, always doing what the Superior has asked him to do, preserving his monastic vows, moving from a job to another or from a monastery to another as instructed by his superiors, without being attached to anything. The superior cautioned him at table once, so he knelt down immediately in front of everybody: the general authority, the superiors, the monks and the novices asking for forgiveness. He was a true image of a maronite monastic saying, that a monk’s weapons are his chaplet and his knees, meaning prayer and humbleness.

Brother Estephan (the 2nd from the right, fist row) with other monks.
Photo Taken on August 16, 1929

He was pure like an angel, decent in his way of dressing and speaking, never mentioned any bad word. He liked the laborers and used to ask them to refrain from saying bad words.

Taking the example of the Christ who didn’t have a place to lay his head, brother Estephan was of a great integrity, preserving the holy vow of poverty, working as a poor little worker for God and for the Order. He never carried any money and didn’t possess any of it. When he sold anything from the field he used to give the money to the Superior. His clothing was poor and didn’t have a shirt, his superior dressed him with his own shirt upon his death. His robe was clean and he washed his clothes by himself with his hands, he never lost his time but was always praying or working in the field or in the carpentry.

He seldom left the monastery, and his visits to his parents in Lehfed were rare. If he had to go to Lehfed, he used to go on a quick visit and come back in the evening to the monastery, and resume work on the second day. On one occasion he was returning from his hometown and there was heavy rains, some of his parents intercepted him, Tannous Elias Nehme among them, and urged him to stay in the village, but he went on with his trip back to the monastery in spite of the heavy rain because he was not used to sleep outside his monastery.

His nephew witnessed once that Estephan made some carpentry works for a new room in his brother's house newly built, when he finished his work he said to his brother: the cost of the wood is two liras that you have to pay, but as for my pay I asked the Superior to waive it for you. Then someone who was present asked: why won’t you keep the two liras for your brother’s house as well? He answered that he didn’t want to have money from the wakf in their home.


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