(CE:1135a)
GABRIEL VIII, ninety-seventh patriarch of the See of Saint Mark (1586-1601). His name before taking the monastic vow was Shinudah and he came from the town of Meir in the province of Asyut. This is all we can extract from the HISTORY OF THE PATRIARCHS, which in a matter of three lines erroneously records his town as al-Manbir. He was a monk in the wilderness of Shihat, but there is no indication to which of its monasteries he belonged, although it has been suggested that he was a monk of DAYR ANBA BISHOI.
This is, of course, an obscure period in the history of the Egyptian nation and especially the Coptic sector. Gabriel was a contemporary of two Ottoman sultans, Murad III (1574-1595) and Muhammad III (1595-1603). He is said to have died in 1603 in the wilderness of Shihat, where he was buried, without mention of any specific monastery. He was patriarch for fifteen years. [See also: Gabriel VII.]
SUBHY Y. LABIB
