Who was Saint Jude?
Who was Saint Jude?
St. Jude was an apostle of Jesus and a possible author of The Epistle of Jude. St. Jude is referred to in the New Testament as Judas Thaddeus or Judas son of James. Though accounts of St. Jude are sparse and often conflict, tradition has consistently associated St. Jude as one of two apostles to Persia, the other being St. Simon.
There are ongoing scholarly questions about St. Jude. Jude has long been regarded in popular devotion as the “patron of desperate or lost causes,” but the basis of this tradition is obscure. A common folk explanation suggests that few Christians invoked St. Jude out of misplaced fear of praying to Judas Iscariot (of the same first name). Consequently, St. Jude was desperate to be invoked for aid, even in the most desperate of situations.
Saint Jude in the Bible
John mentions St. Jude in his description of the Last Supper.
Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, “But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?”
Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.
“All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:22-27)
Above: Above is St. Jude’s statue of St. Jude, found in our sanctuary during service times. Many parishioners light candles of remembrance, prayers, hope, and thankfulness on Sundays.
Saint Jude and Thaddeus
St. Jude has often been confused with another man surnamed Thaddeus. This Thaddeus is associated with the legend of King Abgar of Edessa. In the tale, King Abgar fell ill with leprosy. He wrote to Jesus, asking for Jesus to come heal his sickness. Jesus sent a letter in reply. He told King Abgar that he could not come in person, but when he had ascended he would send a disciple to heal King Abgar and preach the gospel. After Christ’s assumption into heaven, Thomas the Apostle sent Thaddeus to King Abgar. He cured Abgar’s leprosy by rubbing Jesus’ letter on his wounds. While current research suggests that St. Jude and Thaddeus were two different people, older scholarly traditions still attribute the curing of King Abgar to St. Jude and tie this curing to St. Jude’s association with lost causes.
Above: St. Jude’s provided a significant gift of love and solidarity to a Roman Catholic parish in Puerto Rico, home of a large statue of St. Jude, after the earthquake caused enormous damage to the church.
Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and a brother of James,
To those who have been called, who are loved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ:
Mercy, peace and love be yours in abundance.
Jude 1:1-2
References
Cross, F. L., and E. A. Livingstone, Eds. 1997. The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
General Convention of the Episcopal Church, 2018. Lesser Feasts and Fasts. New York: Church Publishing Incorporated.
ST. JUDE THE APOSTLE EPISCOPAL CHURCH
20920 McClellan Road
Cupertino, CA 95014
(408) 252-4166
office@saintjudes.org
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