Saint Gabriel of Beth Qustan ( syr, ܡܪܝ ܓܒܪܐܝܠ: ''Mor Gabriel''), also known as Saint Gabriel of Qartmin, was the Bishop of

Tur Abdin Tur Abdin ( syr, ܛܽܘܪ ܥܰܒ݂ܕܺܝܢ or ܛܘܼܪ ܥܲܒ݂ܕܝܼܢ, Ṭūr ʿAḇdīn) is a hilly region situated in southeast Turkey, including the eastern half of the Mardin Province, and Şırnak Province west of the Tigris, on the borde ...

until his death in 648. He is venerated as a saint in the

Oriental Orthodox Church The Oriental Orthodox Churches are Eastern Christian churches adhering to Miaphysite Christology, with approximately 60 million members worldwide. The Oriental Orthodox Churches are part of the Nicene Christian tradition, and represent o ...

and his feast day is 23 December.

Biography

Gabriel was born in the village of Beth Qustan in 573/574, and became a monk at the Monastery of Qartmin in 588/589. In 593/594, he was ordained a deacon, and, in 612/613, Gabriel was elected head of the brothers at the monastery. He was ordained a priest in 618/619, and became Abbot of the Monastery of Qartmin and Archbishop of

Dara Dara is a given name used for both males and females, with more than one origin. Dara is found in the Bible's Old Testament Books of Chronicles. Dara �רעwas a descendant of Judah (son of Jacob). (The Bible. 1 Chronicles 2:6). Dara (also known ...

on 1 May 634.Palmer (1990), pp. 157-158 Gabriel succeeded Daniel Uzoyo as abbot and bishop.Palmer (1990), p. 154 Following the

Muslim Conquest of Mesopotamia The Muslim conquest of Persia, also known as the Arab conquest of Iran, was carried out by the Rashidun Caliphate from 633 to 654 AD and led to the fall of the Sasanian Empire as well as the eventual decline of the Zoroastrian religion. The r ...

in 639, Gabriel likely negotiated the rights and obligations of the Syriac Orthodox Church in Tur Abdin with the Muslim conquerors. He may also have met with the Caliph

Umar ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb ( ar, عمر بن الخطاب, also spelled Omar, ) was the second Rashidun caliph, ruling from August 634 until his assassination in 644. He succeeded Abu Bakr () as the second caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate o ...

. Several miracles are attributed to Gabriel during his time as bishop, including the resurrection of the son of a widow in the village of Sighun, a boy from the village of Olin, and his friend the abbot of the

Monastery of the Cross The Monastery of the Cross ( ar, دير الصليب, ''Dayr al-Salīb''; he, מנזר המצלבה; ka, ჯვრის მონასტერი, ''jvris monast'eri'') is an Eastern Orthodox monastery near the Nayot Nayot ( he, נָיו� ...

near Hah.Johnson (2008), p. 61 According to his hagiography, at the age of 70, Gabriel sent men to transport a large stone at Beth Debe to the Monastery of Qartmin, however, they were forced to abandon the stone due to its size. Gabriel ordered the people in the monastery to help transport the stone, at which the dead rose to help. The stone was moved to the Dome of Theodora at the monastery and Gabriel begged the dead for their forgiveness. After 644, Gabriel became the Bishop of Tur Abdin with authority equal to an archbishop, and he later died on 23 December 648. Gabriel's funeral was attended by 2700 priests and altar boys,Johnson (2008), p. 62 and the bishops Iwannis of Amida, Ignatius of Mayperqat, Gregory of

Arzon Arzon () or ''Arzhon-Rewiz'' in Breton () is a commune located at the extremity of the Rhuys peninsula in the Morbihan department in the Brittany region in northwestern France. Geography Arzon is said to be the French village with the longes ...

, Basil of Jazira, Polycarp of Beth Araboye, Dioscorus of

Singara Singara (, ''tà Síngara'') was a strongly fortified post at the northern extremity of Mesopotamia, which for a while, as it appears from coins minted there, was occupied by the Romans as an advanced colony against the Persians. It was the camp o ...

and Haburo, Epiphanius of

Nisibis Nusaybin (; '; ar, نُصَيْبِيْن, translit=Nuṣaybīn; syr, ܢܨܝܒܝܢ, translit=Nṣībīn), historically known as Nisibis () or Nesbin, is a city in Mardin Province, Turkey. The population of the city is 83,832 as of 2009 and is ...

, Sisinnius of Dara, John of Kfar Tutho, and Jacob of Sawro. A 10-year-old boy died at the funeral, but was resurrected soon after. A plague in 774 led the monks of the Monastery of Qartmin to exhume Gabriel's remains to help ward off the plague. Gabriel's right hand was removed and taken to Hah, and his body was reburied in a bronze coffin.Palmer (1990), p. 72 Gabriel later became the patron saint of the Monastery of Qartmin, and, by the end of the fifteenth century, the monastery became known as the Monastery of Saint Gabriel.Palmer (1990), p. 156

References

Bibliography

* * {{authority control 648 deaths 574 births 6th-century Christian saints 7th-century Christian saints 7th-century Syriac Orthodox Church bishops Christians of the Rashidun Caliphate Christians in the Sasanian Empire Mesopotamian saints Syriac Orthodox Church saints Miracle workers