Saint Pharaildis and the Resurrection of the Cooked Goose. By Dr Chapman Chen

Saint Pharaildis (650 – 740) or Pharailde (Dutch: Veerle), born in Ghent, Belgium, carries a goose as her insignia. According to the Acta Sanctorum (Antwerp 1643) and Domenico Casagrande’s Saints and Animals (see Marilena Bogazzi 2025, Christian Inspired Vegetarianism, pp. 62-63), Pharaildis manifested compassion and affection for all living creatures, as evidenced by her resuscitation of a cooked goose from its bones.

1. An Encounter with Geese

During winter, one evening, the Saint was strolling across a field when she encountered several geese that were snatching from one another the grass they found scattered about. Seeing this, the Saint decided to gather them together, like a flock of lambs, and lead them to a house along her path. She entrusted the birds to the householder and asked him to feed them and afterwards set them free. Then she continued on to the monastery to pray.

2. One Goose Cooked

The following evening, she returned to the house and noticed that one goose was missing, perhaps having flown away. But no—it had not escaped, poor creature. It had been eaten by the householders after being roasted on a spit. When a child told her what had happened, Saint Pharaildis was deeply grieved, and she instructed the householder to bring her the feathers and bones of the bird.

3. The Resurrection

The man complied, thinking the Saint intended to make use of those remains. But when Pharaildis held the feathers, bones, beak, and feet of the unfortunate goose, she placed them upon a table, reconstructing, as best she could, the form of the animal.

She was not merely playing at assembling a goose. As soon as the Saint had restored its form, the goose came back to life, leapt onto the table, spread its wings, flapped them twice to stretch them, and, honking, flew off into the farmyard near the house, right before the flabbergasted householder. It returned to the free life of the fields… just as Saint Pharaildis had wished.

4. The Lost Goose vs. The Lost Sheep

The story recalls the Parable of the Lost Sheep (Luke 15 & Matt 18), in which Jesus illustrates God’s immense love and care for every sentient creature. Just as the Good Shepherd diligently searches for the one sheep missing from his hundred, so too Pharaildis does not ignore the goose that has disappeared from the flock she has rescued.

5. An Anti-Consumption Miracle

This miracle is not merely a display of supernatural power; it is a theological sign. The animal is not healed for human use, nor restored to be sacrificed again, but liberated from the very system that consumed it. In this sense, the miracle functions as a reversal of violence and an implicit critique of the reduction of sentient creatures to food. Pharaildis’ prior instruction—that the animals be fed and released—further underscores that her intention was never one of stewardship for consumption, but of compassionate coexistence. The narrative thus anticipates, in symbolic form, a vision of creation in which life is not taken but restored, and in which the divine will is expressed not through domination but through mercy.

6. The Saint’s Background

Saint Pharaildis was the daughter of Witger, Duke of Lorraine and his wife Amalberga of Maubeuge (who later also became a nun and a saint). After making a private vow of virginity, she was forced into marriage with a wealthy nobleman. She was physically abused by her husband for her refusal to submit to him, and for her late night visits to churches. When widowed, she was still a virgin, and dedicated herself to charity. Her feast day is January 4, and her feast, Fru Verelde, was a major festival in Ghent in the late 19th century (according to Acte de Pharailde 1882). 

Full text: https://www.vegantheology.net/post/saint-pharaildis-and-the-resurrection-of-the-cooked-goose-by-dr-chapman-chen