On October 28, we celebrate the feast of Saints Simon and
Jude, although this year the feast falls on a Sunday. Saint Jude is the patron
of Hope, of things almost despaired of, difficult situations.
Saint Jude Thaddeus was one of the twelve Apostles, the
brother of James the Less, and a cousin of Jesus. He preached in Mesopotamia,
Libya and Persia with St. Simon where they made many converts. Both were
martyred.
Saint Jude is often pictured holding an image of Jesus, the
Holy Mandylion of Jesus, the Image of Edessa. King Abagar of Edessa had leprosy
and asked Jesus to cure him. He sent an artist to bring him a drawing of the
great healer. Jesus was so impressed with the king’s faith that he pressed his
face on the cloth and left his image on it. St. Jude then took the cloth to the
king and he was cured.
More information on St. Jude can be found HERE.
There have been periods in the history of the church when
devotion to St. Jude has waned. Some think this may be because of the
similarity of his name to that of the Lord’s betrayer. Even John in his Gospel
identifies Jude as “not the Iscariot.” But it seems that God specifically
wanted his cousin Jude to be called upon as an intercessor. In visions, both
St. Bernard and St. Bridget of Sweden were asked by God to accept St. Jude as
the Patron Saint of the Impossible. To Saint Bridget he said, “In accordance
with his surname, Thaddeus, the amiable or loving, he will show himself willing
to help.” The Lord himself has recommended St. Jude as an intercessor!!!
Has he ever shown himself willing to help.
Those who ask
for his intercession often see miracles.
From my own personal experience I believe he is also a saint
with a sense of humor. My husband and I once owned a sailboat that we kept at a
marina about an hour from our home. At one point we decided we really needed to
sell it. After listing it for some time with no success at all, we decided to
ask Saint Jude for help. About a week later a stranger came to our door and
asked if we were interested in selling our boat. I looked at him puzzled
because the sailboat was not listed locally. How could this man know we had a
sailboat for sale? I said, “Our boat?” He said, “Yes, the canoe on the side of
your house.” I said, “Oh! Well, I’ll ask my husband. He might want to sell it.”
After closing the door I laughed and looked heavenward.
“Saint Jude, I meant the sailboat!” Then I realized Saint Jude knew we meant
the sailboat. I felt he was telling me to hold on, that he was working on it.
Shortly after selling the canoe, we also sold the sailboat. Thank you, Saint
Jude.
How often Saint Jude has helped me. Imagine my delight upon
learning that two of my children wanted to name children after Saint Jude. One
already has and there may be another!
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| Baby Jude! |
My aunt was extremely devoted to Saint Jude and regularly asked for his intercession. On one occasion her son had been unable to study properly for an important test in high school. My aunt prayed that something would happen to postpone the test. When her son returned home she asked him how the test went. He said that the teacher had fallen ill and the test was postponed. My aunt started laughing and confessed to having appealed to Saint Jude. My cousin was somewhat aghast. “Mom! You have to be careful when you ask Saint Jude for something. I didn’t want the teacher to get sick!”
We had a neighbor who also loved Saint Jude. She told my mom that there was a very real possibility that her husband was going to be transferred to a Muslim country where there were no churches, no Eucharistic Presence. She was a very devout Catholic and horrified at the thought of living without the Presence of the Eucharistic Lord. She appealed to Saint Jude. Not only did her husband not get the position that would have required such a move, he actually lost his job completely.
If you appeal to Saint Jude, know that he may do whatever it
takes to answer your prayer!
A novena to Saint Jude could be started on October 19 and
conclude on October 27, the day before his feast day. EWTN provides a novena
prayer HERE.
Or you could use this simple prayer:
Do you have a Saint Jude story?
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