Gabriel Urgebadze
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Gabriel of Georgia (
Biography
Gabriel was born Goderdzi Urgebadze in
On 1 May 1965, he first became well-known in Georgia by setting fire to a banner depicting Vladimir Lenin during an International Workers' Day parade in downtown Tbilisi. He was arrested, tried and ruled to be psychotic, then confined to a mental hospital. For seven months, he was tortured there for his faith.[2][3] An account of this incident was published in the West, in the Orthodox zine Death to the World in 1994.[4]
Gabriel spent much of his later life at the nunnery of Saint Nino, which is attached to Samtavro Monastery in the ancient town of Mtskheta north of Tbilisi. He died there in 1995, and was buried in the Samtavro churchyard.[5]
Veneration
The hieromonk Gabriel is believed by Eastern Orthodox Christians to have possessed powers of healing and prophecy, while his remains are considered incorrupt. The oil from a lamp which constantly burned at his tomb in Mtskheta is also considered miraculous.[5] His grave became an increasingly popular pilgrimage site, and in 2012, the Holy Synod of the Georgian Orthodox Church officially recognized him as a saint.
In January 2014 rumours spread that Gabriel, in a supposed apparition to a nun in Mtskheta, had promised that two wishes will be granted to those visiting his tomb just before Christmas on 7 January. This sparked several mass gatherings at Samtavro that extra police units had to be deployed to control traffic. Church officials and the alleged seer-nun later dismissed the visions as false.[6][7]
The
References
- ^ "Журнал №113 заседания Священного Синода Русской православной церкви от 25 декабря 2014 года". www.patriarchia.ru. Retrieved 2016-05-25.
- ^ "Archimandrite Gabriel Urgebadze". monkgabriel.ge. Retrieved 2 March 2014.
- ^ John. "Saint Gabriel the Confessor and Fool for Christ (+ 1995)". Retrieved 2023-10-04.
- ^ "The Burning Beast". Death to the World. 1. 25 January 2013 [1994]. Retrieved 2 March 2014.
- ^ a b c Svanidze, Tako (22 February 2014). "Pilgrims seek miracles at opening of saint's tomb". Agenda.ge. Retrieved 2 March 2014.
- ^ "Georgia: Pilgrims seek wish fulfilment at monk's tomb". BBC News. 7 January 2014. Retrieved 2 March 2014.
- ^ Rekhviashvili, Jimsher (7 January 2014). "Reports Of Holy Vision Sparks Mass Pilgrimage In Georgia". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Retrieved 2 March 2014.
- ^ Christ, Saint Gabriel of Georgia Confessor of. "Saint Gabriel of Georgia - Confessor of Christ". www.monkgabriel.ge. Retrieved 2023-10-04.
Further reading
- Mshvenieradze, Dali (2006–2007). ბერის დიადემა. მოგონებები მამა გაბრიელზე [The Monk's Diadem. Memoirs about Father Gabriel. Volumes 1, 2] (in Georgian). Tbilisi. ISBN 99940-65-51-3.)
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link - "Confessor of Christ in present day Georgia", The Orthodox Word, 1992, USA
External links
- Official website: www.monkgabriel.ge
- English documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOVB-6st9TU
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