Friday, November 23, 2012

Tale of a rooster



As a child I always loved this rooster that sat on my Grandma's coffee table.  I had not seen him for years until I walked into an office at work the other day.  I asked the office occupant about the rooster and made the comment that my Grandma had one just like that and I always loved it.  He explained to me the back story of the rooster and I thought I would share.  

The story of the rooster begins in Barcelos, which is located in north-west Portugal.  Often pilgrims would pass through Barcelos as part of their pilgrimage to the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela, and they would rest at various inns along the way.  While in Barcelos one pilgrim stopped to rest at an inn, and the inn keeper complained that his silver had been stolen.  Since the pilgrim was in the area at the time, he was blamed for the theft and was stated to be hanged on the town plaza.  

Knowing that he was innocent the pilgrim pleaded to speak with the local judge in order to appeal his case, and begrudgingly the judge agreed to see him.  When the guards took the pilgrim to the judge's home he was in the middle of a large dinner, and the main course of the meal was a large roasted rooster that sat in the center of the table.  The judge ignored the pilgrim's plea of innocence, saying there was no proof that he did not commit the theft.  

Still certain of his innocence and his belief in a fair and loving God, the pilgrim fell to his knees and started praying.  At that point he noticed the rooster sitting in the center of the table, and he prayed that God would prove his innocence by making the rooster come back to life and crow in protest to the hanging.  

Unconvinced, the judge ordered the guards to take the pilgrim away and the hanging was still scheduled to go ahead as planned.  

Just before the hanging was to take place, witnesses claim to have seen the rooster stand up from the table and start crowing, just as the pilgrim prayed it would.  Realizing what the crowing meant, the judge quickly released the pilgrim from the gallows immediately.  The pilgrim was freed and continued on his way to the Santiago de Compostelo thanks to being saved by the wonderful crowing rooster!

The symbol of the rooster now acts as a reminder of the miracle and moral of this story, and is said to bring good luck!



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10 comments:

  1. Who knew roosters brought good luck? Great little story! That rooster is adorable too!

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    1. Mine usually just bring me headaches, but I like to think they are lucky! :)

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  2. What a great story!!! I love it!! I'm going to add your blog to my bloglist ok?? www.fruittreehillhannibal.blogspot.com

    JL~

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  3. Wow, great story! I've never heard that one before. Really cute rooster, too!

    Found you via The Chicken Chick :)

    Tammy
    http://ourneckofthewoods.net

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    1. Thanks so much! I am heading over to check out your blog now!

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  4. Hello! I am very happy to see a Galo de Barcelos in USA.

    I live next Barcelos em V.N. de Famalicão, Minho, Portugal.

    Os meus Parabéns! e obrigada!Adorei a história do Galo!

    Um beijo para si e para todos aqueles que ama, deste frio Portugal. Adorei a história do Galo! :)

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    1. Muito obrigado por ler o meu blog! Eu também amo a história do galo, e estou tão animado alguém de Portugal gostaram da minha história também! Muitas bênçãos para você e sua nesta temporada de férias, e eu espero que você vai parar de volta para visitar novamente no futuro.

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  5. I'm making the Camino De Santiago in September of this year and have seen this particular tale in quite a few of the guide books and websites about the pilgrimage. I'll try and get you some photos of the church that has the chicken and rooster in the pulpit.
    --Allen

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    1. I would love to see pictures. Thanks for thinking of me!

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