St Charbel heals Nohad El Shami from hemiplegia.
Nohad El Shami is from Mezarib in Mount Lebanon and is married with 12 children (7 sons and 5 daughters). On the evening of the 9th of January 1993, Nohad suffered severe weakness, stiffness and lack of control to her left leg, arm and mouth. She was immediately taken to Saint Maritime Hospital in Jbeil, Mount Lebanon for tests and examinations.
At the hospital, Dr. Joseph Chamy, a cardiologist, examined Nohad and immediately referred her to the Intensive Care Unit to be examined by Dr. Antoine Nachakian and Dr. Majid Chamy. After many consultations, X-rays and medical tests, the doctors said that Nohad had suffered hemiplegia which was due to the obstruction and blockage of 80% of her left brain arteries and 70% of her right brain arteries. The doctors concluded by saying that there was no medicine or treatments which can cure Nohad.
However the doctors said there was still a slight possibility to perform surgery on a later date to replace the obstructed arteries with new plastic arteries. Therefore the doctors advised Nohad to go to Hotel Dieu Hospital in three months for new X-rays and tests to determine what the next steps should be to cure Nohad from hemiplegia.
For the next 9 days Nohad stayed in hospital under the watchful eyes of the doctors and nurses to see if her health stabilised or deteriorated. During this time, Nohad’s eldest son, Saad, immediately went to the St Peter and St Paul hermitage in Annaya, Mount Lebanon to get help from St Charbel. This hermitage in Annaya was the place where St Charbel used to pray, meditate, fast, work and sleep. Saad prayed very hard to St Charbel for his mum’s healing at the hermitage and brought back for his mum consecrated oil and soil from the tomb of St Charbel. Nohad’s daughter applied the consecrated oil and soil on Nohad’s body in the hospital and immediately Nohad felt tingles in her hand and feet.
When Nohad finally returned home from hospital, she was taken straight to her bed to relax and sleep. The pain was so bad that Nohad could not leave her bed and her husband had to help her go to the bathroom and her children had to give her food and water through a straw. Nohad spent the next three days in her bed in agony and pain after leaving the hospital.
While Nohad was sleeping at home, she saw in her dream that she was walking up the stairs at the St Peter and St Paul hermitage in Annaya, Mount Lebanon and then she attended a mass service in the presence of several monks. During this mass service, St Charbel gave Nohad the Holy Communion.
On the night of the 22nd January 1993, Nohad saw in her dream two maronite monks standing next to her bed. One of the monks put his hands on her neck and started operating on her while the other monk relieved her from her pain by holding a pillow behind her back. When Nohad woke up from the dream, she discovered two long surgical wounds on each side of her neck. Nohad also noticed she could move her arms and walk on her legs as normal. Nohad was completely healed from hemiplegia.
The next night, Nohad saw St Charbel in her dream and he said to her, “I did the surgery to let people see and return to their faith. I ask you to visit my hermitage in Annaya on the 22nd of every month and attend Mass regularly for the rest of your life”. The second Maronite monk that was present in the operation of Nohad was St Maroun.
Since St Charbel appeared to Nohad in her dream on the 22nd January 1993, hundreds and thousands of people from Lebanon and all over the world gather on the 22nd of each month to pray and celebrate Mass in Annaya, Mount Lebanon.