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Born in poverty, he was trained
in religion by pious parents. For many years he embraced poverty as God's
will for him. Cared for the poor and sick in his teens. When he worked the
fields, an angel would sometimes man the plow so that Guy could pray
undistracted. Hung around the local church so much the priest made him the
sacristan; lived in the church, and often spent all night in prayer.
A merchant from Brussels either decided to give the boy a leg up in the
world, or that Guy was a bumpkin who could be defrauded; versions vary.
Either way, he offered Guy a part share in a new project that could make
him rich. In the first ocean-going expedition in the project, the ship
sank; Guy took it as a sign that he was right to begin with, and returned
to his old life.
Walked to Rome as penance for his bout of greed, then to Jerusalem where
he worked for a while as a guide to pilgrims, then back to Brussels.
Though he never joined any order or house, he vowed chastity, and devoted
most of his time to prayer, and work as a sacristan.
Many post-mortem miracles attributed to him. An annual festival grew up in
the area around his grave, with most of the activities involving horses
and the people who work with them.
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