October 28 Sts. Simon and Jude
St. Simon is often pictured with a saw, which is the sign of his martyrdom of being sawed in half. Little is known about him except that he was called Simon the Zealot. This is was probably because his mission work took him far away from Jerusalem.
If you know anyone with these names, you can wish them a "Happy Feast Day" and remember them in your prayers. Perhaps make them a special treat suitable for this time of year--pumpkin cookies, donuts, etc.
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The Gospel tells us that St. Jude was a brother of St. James the Less, also one of the Apostles. He is the Patron Saint of Hope and impossible causes and one of Jesus’ original twelve Apostles.
St. Jude is traditionally depicted carrying the image of Jesus in his hand. This recalls one of his miracles during his work spreading the Word of God. King Abagar of Edessa asked Jesus to cure him of leprosy and sent an artist to bring him a drawing of Jesus. Impressed with Abagar’s great faith, Jesus pressed His face on a cloth, leaving the image of His face on it. He gave the cloth to St. Jude, who took the image to Abagar and cured him. In the early 20th century, St. Jude Thaddeus was relatively unknown to the general Catholic population in the US. In 1929, the first devotional services to St. Jude were held by Claretian Fr. James Tort at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in southeast Chicago; before the year ended, the country’s only National Shrine of St. Jude would be firmly established. Word of the devotions to St. Jude gradually spread from that tiny corner of Chicago to other parts of the country. During the Great Depression and World War II, thousands of men, women, and children attended novenas at the Shrine; devotion to the “patron saint of hopeless causes” spread throughout the country. |
To Pray:
Collect from the Mass:
Father, you revealed yourself to us through the preaching of your apostles Simon and Jude. By their prayers, give your Church continued growth and increase the number of those who believe in you. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.
Collect from the Mass:
Father, you revealed yourself to us through the preaching of your apostles Simon and Jude. By their prayers, give your Church continued growth and increase the number of those who believe in you. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.
