Saint Godelieve (also known as Godeleva, Godeliève, and Godelina; nl, Sint-Godelieve) ( 10526 July 1070) is a

Flemish Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...

saint. She behaved with charity & gentleness to all, accepting an arranged marriage as was the custom, but her husband and family turned out to be abusive. Eventually he had her strangled by his servants. Every year, on the Sunday following 5 July, a procession celebrating Saint Godelieve takes place in

Gistel Gistel () is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. Following local government boundary reforms in 1971 and 1977, the municipality has comprised not only Gistel, but also the towns of Moere, Snaaskerke and Ze ...

Hagiography

Tradition, as recorded in her ''Vita'', states that she was pious as a young girl, and became much sought after by suitors as a beautiful young woman. Godelieve, however, wanted to become a nun. A nobleman named Bertolf (Berthold) of

, however, determined to marry her, successfully invoked the help of her father's overlord, Eustace II, Count of Boulogne, along with her parents. She accepted the betrothal obediently & went to Bertolf's family home. There she was badly treated by him & his mother, while she continued to live an obedient daughter-in-law & managed the household well & with Christian charity. Bertold became more dis-satisfied with her & he ordered his servants to provide only bread and water to the young bride. Godelieve shared this food with the poor. Godelieve managed to escape to the home of her father, Hemfrid, seigneur of Wierre-Effroy. Hemfrid, appealing to the

Bishops of Tournai A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

and Soissons and the

Count of Flanders The count of Flanders was the ruler or sub-ruler of the county of Flanders, beginning in the 9th century. Later, the title would be held for a time, by the rulers of the Holy Roman Empire and Spain. During the French Revolution, in 1790, the co ...

, they concluded the marriage to be indissoluble and managed to have Bertolf restore Godelieve to her rightful position as his wife, which signaled a renewal of persecution.Rudge, F.M. "St. Godelina." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 6. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. 4 October 2021 In July 1070, Godelieve returned to Gistel and soon after, at the order of Bertolf, was

strangled Strangling is compression of the neck that may lead to unconsciousness or death by causing an increasingly hypoxic state in the brain. Fatal strangling typically occurs in cases of violence, accidents, and is one of two main ways that hanging ...

by two servants and thrown into a pool, causing it to appear she died a

natural death In many legal jurisdictions, the manner of death is a determination, typically made by the coroner, medical examiner, police, or similar officials, and recorded as a vital statistic. Within the United States and the United Kingdom, a distinct ...

Legend

According to legend, Bertolf married again, and had a daughter Edith, who was born blind: the legend states that Edith was cured through the intercession of Saint Godelieve. Bertolf, now repentant of his crimes, went to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

to obtain absolution. He went on a

pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a journey, often into an unknown or foreign place, where a person goes in search of new or expanded meaning about their self, others, nature, or a higher good, through the experience. It can lead to a personal transformation, aft ...

to the

Holy Land The Holy Land; Arabic: or is an area roughly located between the Mediterranean Sea and the Eastern Bank of the Jordan River, traditionally synonymous both with the biblical Land of Israel and with the region of Palestine. The term "Holy ...

, and became a monk at St. Winnoc's Abbey at Bergues. Edith founded a

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

, which was dedicated to Saint Godelieve, which she joined herself as a nun.

Veneration

Godelieve's body was exhumed in 1084 by the Bishops of Tournai and Noyon, in the presence of

Gertrude of Saxony Gertrude of Saxony ( 1030 – August 4, 1113), also known as Gertrude Billung, was a countess of Holland by marriage to Floris I, Count of Holland, and countess of Flanders by marriage to Robert I, Count of Flanders. She was regent of Holland in ...

, the wife of

Robert I, Count of Flanders Robert I ( – 13 October 1093), known as ''Robert the Frisian'', was count of Flanders from 1071 to his death in 1093. He was a son of Baldwin V, Count of Flanders and the younger brother of Baldwin VI, Count of Flanders. He usurped the countsh ...

, the Abbot of St. Winnoc's and a number of clergymen. It was Radbod II, bishop of Noyon-Tournai, that consecrated Godelieve's relics in 1084, and Godelieve's popular cult developed thereafter. Drogo, a monk of St. Winnoc's Abbey, wrote Godelieve's biography, the ''Vita Godeliph'', about ten years after her death. The abbey of

Ten Putte Abbey Ten Putte Abbey (also known as the Saint Godelina Abbey) is a monastery with an abbey in Gistel, roughly 8 km (5 miles) to the south of Ostend, in the western part of Belgium. It was built to mark the spot where, in 1070, Saint Godelina was mur ...

in Bruges was dedicated to her. Every year, on the Sunday following 5 July, a procession celebrating Saint Godelieve takes place in Gistel. In 2017, the Godelieve procession was recognized as an Intangible Cultural Heritage. Godelieve's

feast day The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context d ...

, 6 July, was, like that of Saint Swithun in England and

Saint Medard Saint Medardus or St Medard ( French: ''Médard'' or ''Méard'') (ca. 456–545) was the Bishop of Noyon. He moved the seat of the diocese from Vermand to Noviomagus Veromanduorum (modern Noyon) in northern France. Medardus was one of the most ...

in France, connected with the

weather Weather is the state of the atmosphere, describing for example the degree to which it is hot or cold, wet or dry, calm or stormy, clear or cloudy. On Earth, most weather phenomena occur in the lowest layer of the planet's atmosphere, the ...

. She is thus considered one of the "weather saints". A monastery of Benedictine nuns was established on the site of her home, belonging to the Subiaco Congregation. It was closed due to falling numbers about 2020; the building is currently under review by the city/church authorities.

The Godelieve Polyptych

Godelieve's life is represented in the Godelieve Polyptych, now in the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Image:JanProvostDonorwithStNicholas andwifewithStGodelina.JPG, ''Donor with

Saint Nicholas Saint Nicholas of Myra, ; la, Sanctus Nicolaus (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greeks, Greek descent from the maritime city of Myra in Asia Minor (; modern-da ...

and Wife with Saint Godelina'' by

Jan Provoost Jan Provoost, or Jean Provost, or Jan Provost (1462/65 – January 1529) was a Belgian painter born in Mons. Provost was a prolific master who left his early workshop in Valenciennes to run two workshops, one in Bruges, where he was made a burghe ...

. Image:Duinenkerkje.bidkapel01.jpg, Chapel at the back of the Onze-Lieve-Vrouw-ter-Duinenkerk,

Ostend Ostend ( nl, Oostende, ; french: link=no, Ostende ; german: link=no, Ostende ; vls, Ostende) is a coastal city and municipality, located in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerk ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

stained glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

representations of Saint Godelieve and Saint Idesbald.

Notes

References

Sources

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External links

Godeleva (Godelina) von Gistel

Santa Godeleva

at th
Christian Iconography
web site {{Authority control 1050s births 1070 deaths Weather lore Domestic violence Christian female saints of the Middle Ages 11th-century Christian saints 11th-century women of the Holy Roman Empire