More Than You May Want to Know About St. Jude

By: Richard Dole

The apostle St. Jude is distinguished from Iscariot by the surname Thaddeus. Thaddeus means praising or confessing in Syriac. He is referred to as Lebbaeus which means man with heart or courage. This name indicates a man with understanding in Hebrew but comes from the word Leb which also means heart and can also signify Lion[i].

St. Jude was the brother of St. James the Less. Catholic belief is that Jude, the brother of Jesus and the author of the Epistle of Jude are the same person.  According to the surviving fragments of the work by Apostolic Father Papias of Hierapolis, Exposition of the Sayings of the Lord, Thaddeus is identified as the son of Mary the wife of Cleophas, who was the mother of James the bishop and apostle, of Simeon, Joseph and Thaddeus. Hence by referring to Jude as the “brother” of Jesus, Jude is a maternal cousin of the Lord as is James who was the martyred bishop of Jerusalem[ii].

More praiseworthy than St. Jude’s blood relation to Our Lord was his contempt for the world, and his zeal, love and suffering for the sake of the Gospel. Nothing is said about St. Jude in the Gospels before his name is listed with that of the other apostles. After spending much time in prayer, Jesus decided to choose 12 men, 12 unlikely candidates, who would be his apostles and proclaim the Kingdom of God to all people. Simon the Zealot was one of those twelve who were called. The Zealots were a Jewish group who believed that the Messiah would herald a free and independent Jewish nation. At that time Judea was occupied by Rome and had to pay tribute to Cesar. Some Zealots also were concerned that the spiritual ideals of Judaism be observed. Others in the group acted more like modern-day terrorists, raiding, killing, and inciting riots. Simon was referred to as “the zealot” to distinguish him from Simon Peter as well.

At the same time St. Jude was called, he was most likely a fisherman by trade. Along with 10 other men, Jude and Simon, followed Jesus, lived with him, fled when he underwent his Passion, and rejoiced when he rose from the dead. At the last supper, Our Lord promised to manifest Himself to everyone that would love Him. St. Jude asked if the Lord meant manifesting to the apostles or the world. This indicates the expectation of a secular kingdom. The response given by the Lord indicates a more personal and spiritual kingdom of love beginning within the interior life of those that love God (Jn 14:22-24).

After the Lord’s ascension and the descent of the Holy Spirit, St. Jude and the other apostles went forth armed with the Holy Spirit and the name of Jesus to preach the Good News. They also healed the sick, gave sight to the blind and overcame the powers of darkness with the light of truth. One tradition is that Thaddeus was sent to Edessa to aid King Agbar who was suffering from leprosy. According to the legend, King Agbar was cured of leprosy upon seeing the image of the Lord’s face that St. Jude brought with him. Allegedly Agbar hoped to have the Lord himself come to heal him. St. Jude was sent instead due to the demands of the Lord’s ministry and His focus on the children of Israel.

It is believed that St. Jude preached up and down Judea, Samaria, Syria and particularly Mesopotamia. He returned to Jerusalem in the year 62 C.E. after the martyrdom of his brother, James the Less. His brother had been bishop there until thrown to his death from the temple by Jews. St. Jude also traveled to what is modern-day Iraq and Iran. There is also some belief that St. Jude brought the Gospel to Armenia as well. At Pentecost, both Jude and Simon were filled with the Spirit and a burning desire to spread the Good News. Jude traveled to Mesopotamia to preach while Simon went to Egypt. Eventually, they both ended up in Persia, modern-day Iran. There they worked together evangelizing people until they were both martyred. St. Jude is portrayed in art with a club since it is commonly believed that he was clubbed to death. Simon appears with a saw due to the understanding he was severed into pieces. These two apostles witnessed the risen Lord with their lives. After his death, the body of Saint Jude was brought from Beirut to Rome and was placed in a crypt in the great basilica of Saint Peter. Today, the church commemorates his death on the 28th of October, along with his companion St. Simon the Apostle. St. Jude is invoked by people in times of hopelessness and is referred to as the patron of hopeless cases[iii].

We do owe God eternal praise and thanks for the infinite mercy by which he established His church on earth and sends us His sanctifying grace. The same Spirit that was present at Pentecost now descends on the Church built upon the foundation laid by St. Jude and the other apostles. The Lord came to liberate us from sin and the spirit of the world. We can either come to love and choose Him or the world and ourselves. St. Jude preached the promise of restored unity between God and man through the sacrifice of Christ. In the sermon on the mount, our Lord said, “Seek first the kingdom [of God] and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides (Mt 6:33).” Go to God through St. Jude. The world only holds empty promises and half-truths. “He has set before you fire and water to whichever you choose, stretch forth your hand. Before man are life and death, good and evil, whichever he chooses shall be given him (Sir 15:15-16).”

Prayer Said Every Day of Novena

St. Jude apostle, martyr and true relative of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. I come to you with faith and trust in your intercession before the throne of God. I praise the Holy One for Himself and His Spirit that emanates from Him, throughout all of heaven, and throughout all of creation. Through your prayers may the Spirit of God come upon me with the same power that gave you the courage to be His witness and bring the gospel to others. Humbly before you I ask you to pray with me to the Lord for the grace of __________________. I am grateful for your assistance and thank you for now until I might there remain to praise and thank God forever. Amen. God’s will be done. St. Jude, please pray for us.

[i] M.G. Easton M.A., D.D., Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Third Edition, published by Thomas Nelson, 1897

[ii] Papias of Hierapolis (lived c. 70–163 AD.) Exposition of the Oracles of the Lord. Fragment X. earlychristianwritings.com. Retrieved on 11/28/2019.

[iii] St Jude, (1999-2018). https://www.ecatholic2000.com/butler/vol10/october102.shtml. Retrieved on 12/21/2019.