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SHERRY FANJOY AND THE LADIES OF SAINT SHARBEL  By MARI’s Staff Two
Canadian women have formed a group which shows its devotion to
Saint Sharbel in a unique fashion. They meet each Tuesday and
paint portraits of Saint Sharbel. This is the story of Brenda
McDermott, née Peters (original name Soaib), who is of
Maronite Lebanese descent, and Sherry R. Fanjoy, who is an artist
and portrait painter of Saint John New Brunswick. They are the
prime movers in this endeavor to spread devotion to Saint Sharbel. Brenda's
grandparents migrated from Hadsheet, North Lebanon, to Saint
John, New Brunswick in the late 1800s. Because the Maronites
at that time wanted to be accepted in their new communities,
they did not send for a Maronite priest nor did they build a
church of their own. They attended the Latin Catholic churches
and were uninformed about their own particular spiritual and
historical heritage. Brenda's father died when she was ten years
old and she was raised by her mother who was French Canadian.
Brenda always longed to know about the land of her father's ancestors
and so she read the works of Khalil Jibran. This, along with
printed literature and Lebanese and/or Maronite sites on the
Internet, increased her curiosity and quest for more knowledge.
A book about Saint Sharbel, which had been left in church by
John Debly of the Lebanese community, impressed her and aroused
more interest in the Saint, her spiritual heritage, and the land
of Lebanon. Because
of her growing devotion, Brenda asked her artist friend, Sherry,
to paint a portrait of Saint Sharbel from a photograph. Sherry
was slow in responding to Brenda's request but finally began
the portrait. Sherry described her feelings while painting the
portrait as rapturous and somehow spiritual. Sherry claimed that
she felt a spiritual bond with the Saint and wanted to know more
about him. She read the copy of the book about Saint Sharbel
which John Debly had left in church. Sherry said that learning
about the Saint gave her life new meaning. Even Sherry's three-year
old grandson Ethan recognizes Saint Sharbel's portrait which
hangs on the wall and describes him, saying "he is God's
friend". Brenda
was greatly impressed by the finished portrait that she wanted
to learn to paint herself. During the past summer, she and a
few other women began painting portraits of Saint Sharbel under
the guidance of Sherry. Brenda says that Saint Sharbel has brought
her peace and hope and that she wants his portrait hung on walls,
far and wide. When Guita Hourani, Chairwoman of MARI, was visiting
the Lebanese community of Saint John this past October, she participated
in a painting session. Hourani described the session as a wonderful
experience which began with a prayer. “As we proceeded with
the painting of the portrait”, said Hourani, “we were
listening to chants from the CD ‘A Handful of Sand and Incense’
and talking about Saint Sharbel's life and spirituality….
The atmosphere was of joy and camaraderie, an experience that
I would like to repeat.” The
group which meets each Tuesday plans to visit Lebanon and Saint
Sharbel's hermitage in the summer of 2001. In
order to assist MARI in its mission, Sherry Fanjoy is donating
her talent and labor to paint portraits of Saint Sharbel at cost
and at no profit to herself. Those who wish to commission this
unique work of art, measuring 12x16 inches, in oil or acrylic
on canvas, and unframed, may do so for $175 US Dollars. This
includes materials, shipping and handling, with the remaining
35% of the proceedings donated to support MARI’s mission.
To order a painting and for other details, please write to Brenda
McDermott, 897 Bleury Street, Saint John, New Brunswick, E2M
3H7, Canada. Her e-mail address is: dfanj@nb.sympatico.ca.
PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST SHERRY R. FANJOY
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