Silence: A Diary of Suffering and Redemption

Economos Antony Gabriel has had several close encounters with death that have affected him deeply. After fifty years of ministry, Father Antony, as he is still known, retired from Montreal St. George Church in 2015 after his own and his wife’s health crises.

This book is about how he came to grips with his own mortality as a wounded healer by offering comfort and healing to others suffering sickness, sorrow, grief, or bereavement. Needing to make sense of the terror, frustrations, and anger, he has written a vivid portrayal of his battle with cancer and the health-care bureaucracy as he attempted to continue. Readers will see echoes of their struggles with illness or other challenges and find wise counsel in some of his observations and rueful humor in others.

The second part of the book is a reflection of what he learned himself and about himself. It is both philosophical and poetic by turn with wisdom distilled into short but powerful phrases that will stay with the reader.

Religion is an important part of this book, but the book is not doctrinal. It is rather about a man’s struggle to overcome often against himself and, through his faith, find acceptance and healing.

“Silence is the ultimate harmony in divinity, that is, God. For a brief moment, I enjoyed the ecstasy of this beauty!”