The occasion commemorates the ingenuous miracle that was performed by the Saint, a local boy who, soon after suffering his mother's suicide, recovered the shredded and bloodstained remains of a missing girl's dress from the mouth of a stray dog.

The practices of the cult and the annual feast evolved over the years into a huge enterprise, despite persistent objections from the dead girls' brother, Tadeu.

The doting women, Das Graças, and the young novice, Lucia, do their best to maintain order and decency in the household shrine, which occasionally results in bouts of madness.

On the day of the feast, Tadeu steps back into his role of literally propping up the entranced Saint through a procession to the riverside.

A hush goes over the largest gathering ever in attendance as the Saint steps up to the microphone to utter the Dead Girl's annual message.