The Archangel’s
Rest - Church of Our Lady at Gebrayel
After having traversed the cosmos from one end to
the other and carrying out his divine mission, the
Annunciation made to Mary, the Immaculate Conception,
of the Blessed Fruit of her womb...
After having come in contact with mankind and seeing
that human beings created in the image of God are
kind, hospitable, friendly and sociable...
After having admired the work of the Creator in this
universe, the nebulae, galaxies, stars and planets
and above all the beauty of this earth of ours, and
not wishing to leave us but rather to find rest, the
Archangel Gabriel chose a domain not far from Nazareth,
one that drew him by its splendid beauty, a corner
of North Lebanon, near the Cedars, a delightful village
of breath-taking charm, situated on the mountain slopes
at a height of five hundred meters above the sea,
blending into the paradise around. He gave it his
name “Gebrayel”, Gabriel.
Here was an open space of unrivalled verdure, with
forests of pine trees, a village bathed in the sun,
sparkling in an air pure and without pollution, with
kindly people but awesome calm, the only voice being
that of silence.
Water gushes on all sides but to find one of its sources
one must follow a long, winding, narrow and shaded
route, a road of dreams of Paradise. Well may one
wonder if one is in this world or in some planet with
the Little Prince of Saint-Exupéry. It is like
the Retiro, the park in Madrid, a memory of Neuchâtel,
a play of chiaroscuro, a tunnel of verdure, of alternating
light and shadow, opening out on a site where the
water leaps from its spring, “el Halzoum”, the two-horned
snail.
Gebrayel is ten kilometers from Halba, the chief township
of the region. This village of the angel has some
three thousand inhabitants, belonging to the Greek
Orthodox Church. One may notice several churches,
among them ones dedicated to Our Lady and to Saint
Elias the Prophet. The schools are quite modern but
we may well pause at the Church of Our Lady, the arched
construction of which dates back twelve centuries
or more. It is a veritable fortress with walls two
meters thick, leaving narrow windows which give little
light to the interior. There is a fine icon-screen
bearing a large number of Byzantine icons representing
the great saints, the apostles, the holy virgins and
the martyrs. A baptismal font of one solid block stands
at the left of the entrance, a tall column of stone
with a bowl in the top.
It is pleasant to think that this Christian center
has come down through the ages and remained so welcoming
and full of activity. So many conquerors and empires
have passed here. An imposing citadel was raised and
many times taken, the Castle of Aqqar, today only
a heap of ruins, while at its feet the village still
lives on in its verdant groves, with the music of
running water on all sides. Gebraïl is a most
ancient name, Gaber-Il, the force and strength of
God, whose quiet power is felt in the durability of
a generous Nature. A century-old cypress tree stands
guard on the left of the entrance. The old door still
remains but because of the recent restoration of the
front wall another door, this time of aluminum, has
been added to provide protection.
A bell-tower rises over the terrace, surmounted by
a cross, and from here one enjoys a superb panoramic
view of the green surroundings and of the red-roofed
dwellings, the whole giving a delightful effect. Visiting
Gebrayel is like visiting Paradise itself.
Joseph Matar
Translated from the French by K.J. Mortimer
