Feast of
Saints Simon and Jude
from various sources
Saint Simon the Zealot
 This apostle,
Saint Simon the Zealot, shares the feast with
Saint Jude Thaddeus because it is believed both were sent to
Persia where they were
martyred for the
faith in the
first century.
Saint Simon was referred to as the Cananean
in Matthew 10:4 and Mark 3:18 and called the Zealot because of his great
zeal in upholding the Jewish Law (cf. Luke 6:15 and Acts 1:13).
Cananean means "Zelotes" in
Greek
and therefore gives credence to this concept. It was also necessary to give him a title to
distinguish him from Saint Simon Peter who Jesus constantly addressed as
Simon in Sacred
Scripture. After the Council of Jerusalem after
Jesus' Ascension,
Simon went to Egypt
where he preached the Gospel there and then on to Carthage, up into
Spain where James had
been and even into Britain. Sailing back through the Mediterranean he returned to
Jerusalem where he joined Jude on missionary journeys east to
Syria, Mesopotamia and into
Persia which is today Iran. Historians report that he was
sawed in half and left to the
beasts to devour. He is often depicted in art holding the instrument of
his martyrdom.
Again the eastern church differs in the account of this apostle, where his
feast is celebrated on May 10th, maintaining he died peacefully at
Edessa on October 28th, but
because of the nature of his mission and the people he was ministering to, it is highly
unlikely he escaped the crown of martyrdom. This fact was confirmed by
Church scholar and
historian Saint Fortunatus, bishop of Poitier in the
6th Century.
Saint Jude Thaddeus
The saint known as the Patron Saint of Hopeless Cases,
Saint
Jude Thaddeus was a cousin of Jesus since he was the nephew of the
Blessed Mother and
her
chaste spouse Saint Joseph. Jude was also the brother of
Saint James the Less, a fellow
apostle as pointed out in Luke 6:16 and Acts 1:13. In Matthew 13:55 and
Mark 6:3 Jude is
called only Thaddeus. Yet they are both the same man. In fact, most likely
Jude was a
boyhood companion of Jesus, for his and
James' father was Cleophas who
died a
martyr and
whose wife was Mary of Cleophas, who stood at the foot of the
Cross (Matthew 27:56 and
Mark 15:40).
Both Jude and James left everything behind to follow
Jesus, so taken were
they with their childhood Friend Who had planted the seeds of a lasting vocation to follow
Him. After the
Council of Jerusalem, he left for Edessa where tradition tells that he
healed the
king of Edessa of
leprosy by holding up a shield of
Christ and proclaiming the
Name of Jesus over the
pagan ruler.
Jude was instilled
with special gifts of the Holy Spirit including ordering the
demons to leave the
pagan
idols in many of the temples he visited. Once
they were gone, the idol images toppled to
the ground, smashing in pieces. It was a sign to all that Jude's
God was the
One True God.
It is believed Jude returned to
Jerusalem and then returned to Syria with
Saint Simon.
While it is believed Simon died in the city of
Suanis, Persia, some believe Jude
suffered
martyrdom in Beirut which is today Lebanon.
Jude wrote his Epistle warning
Christian
converts of the dangers of
heresy and
immorality some time between
62 and 67 A.D. after
the death of his blood brother Saint James
who had been the Bishop of Jerusalem and before
the death of Saint Peter, for Peter referred to
Jude's Epistle in his own
Second Epistle
(2Peter 2:6, 10-18; 3:2-3).
Some accounts relate Jude was
crucified on the
Cross as an
example to all, but most hold to the tradition that he was clubbed to
death and beheaded.
He is often depicted holding the face of Jesus and a club, the instrument of his
martyrdom. In some illustrations a flame protrudes from his forward representing the power
of the Holy Spirit.
Prayer to Saint Jude
 Glorious Saint Jude Thaddeus, by those sublime
privileges with which you were adorned in your
lifetime, namely, your relationship with Our Lord
Jesus Christ according to the flesh, and your
vocation to be an Apostle, and by that glory
which now is yours in Heaven as the reward of
your apostolic labors and your martyrdom, obtain
for me from the Giver of every good and perfect
gift all the graces of which I stand in need:
(Mention your request here)
May I treasure up in my heart the divinely
inspired doctrines that you have given us in your
Epistle: to build my edifice of holiness upon our
most holy faith, by praying for the grace of the
Holy Spirit- to keep myself in the love of God,
looking for the mercy of Jesus Christ unto eternal
fife; to strive by all means to help those who go astray.
May I thus praise the glory and majesty, the
dominion and power of Him Who is able to keep
me without sin and to present me spotless with
great joy at the coming of our Divine Savior, the
Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen
Novena to Saint Jude
Most holy Apostle, St
Jude, faithful servant and friend of Jesus, the Church honors and invokes you
universally, as the patron of difficult cases, of things almost despaired of, Pray
for me, I am so helpless and alone.
Intercede with God for me that He bring visible and speedy
help where help is almost despaired of. Come to my assistance in this great need that I
may receive the consolation and help of heaven in all my necessities, tribulations,
and sufferings, particularly -
(make your request here)
- and that I may praise God with you and all the
saints forever. I promise, O Blessed St Jude, to be ever mindful of this great
favor granted me by God and to always honor you as my special and powerful patron,
and to gratefully encourage devotion to you.
Amen
Prayer to Saint Jude
May the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus be adored, and loved in all
the tabernacles until the end of time.
Amen
May the most Sacred Heart of Jesus be praised and glorified now and forever.
Amen
Saint Jude pray for us and hear our prayers.
Amen
Blessed be the Sacred Heart of Jesus
Blessed be the Immaculate Heart of Mary
Blessed be Saint Jude Thaddeus, in all the world and for all Eternity.
Amen
(say this prayer, followed by the Our Father and the Hail Mary)
Consecration to Saint Jude
Saint Jude, Apostle of Christ and glorious
martyr, I desire to honor you with a special
devotion. I choose you as my patron and
protector. To you I entrust my soul and my body,
all my spiritual and temporal interests, as well as
those of my family. To you I consecrate my mind
so that in all things it may be enlightened by faith;
my heart so that you may keep it pure and fill it
with love for Jesus and Mary; my will so that,
like yours, it may always be one with the Will of God.
I beg you to help me to master my evil
inclinations and temptations and to avoid all
occasions of sin. Obtain for me the grace of
never offending God, of fulfilling faithfully all the
duties of my state of life, and of practicing all
those virtues that are needful for my salvation.
Pray for me, my holy patron and helper, so that,
being inspired by your example and assisted by
your prayers, I may live a holy life, die a happy
death, and attain to the glory of Heaven, there to
love and thank God forever.
Amen
Prayer to Saint Jude
O God, You made Your Name known to
us through the Apostles.
By the
intercession of Saint Jude,
let Your
Church continue to grow with an
increased number of believers.
Grant this
through Christ our Lord.
Amen
|
|
