Saint Maron (also Maro and modern Maroun) was a Byzantine hermit who lived near the Orontes River at Cyrrhus (in the Levant), generally in the open with no shelter. When he found a pagan temple, he dedicated it to God and made it his oratory. He spent his nights standing in prayer. He was known to have the gift of healing, both physical and of vices. He founded monasteries and trained monks in Syria and Lebanon. He was a great friend of and greatly revered by Saint John Chrysostom. The Maronite Catholics (the majority lives in Lebanon today) take their name from the saint. He died in 435 of natural causes and was buried between Apamea and Emesa, where a monastery grew up around his tomb. He is the patron saint of all Maronite Catholics and the city of Volperino, Italy.
