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Novena to Saint Jude

Saint Jude – Patron of Desperate Causes

St. Jude -- one of the Twelve Apostles and brother of James the Less -- is a mysterious figure in many ways. He moves in and out of the gospel story as a shadowy figure almost as if he were deliberately seeking to submerge his own personality in that of Christ rather than draw any attention to himself. This very obscurity is one of the reasons why he remained unknown and forgotten for so many centuries.

Another explanation for the forgotten saint is the complexity of the "two" Judes which arose because there were two Judes among the twelve apostles: Jude Thaddeus, the cousin of Christ; and Judas Iscariot, the betrayer of Christ. When St. Matthew and St. Mark wrote their Gospels, they attempted to avoid confusion between the two men by listing them apart. They called our St. Jude only by the name of Thaddeus. When they listed the Twelve Apostles, they placed the traitor last and classified him as "Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Him.

Also, in the biblical list of apostles, in the Canon of the Mass, and in the Litany of the Saints our Jude is prayed to only by the name of Thaddeus. This has helped to make him the "forgotten" saint. Later, when The Acts of the Apostles was written by St. Luke (1,13), after the infamous Judas had passed from the sight of the living, his name was dropped from the list of the apostles, and that of Matthias, his successor, was added. Then St. Jude Thaddeus was called by his first name, Jude, but for a long time he remained a "forgotten Jude."

Saint Jude Thaddeus, the loving patron of difficult, usually hopeless cases. One of the wonders of today is the increasing surge of interest in St. Jude. Even more marvellous are the powerful results of his ability to access the Power for his friends on earth. St. Jude listens patiently to trivial requests and he heeds heartrending cries of desperation. The favours he obtains are an avalanche of graces poured into the valley of troubled lives. Where there is despair, and hope is fading, he often amazes us by his speedy and effectual help. The recipients of his intercessions, the favours he obtains on our behalf, have discovered that he is especially effective in solving difficult problems.

Today, more than ever before, is the merit of Jude Thaddeus being revived in people's minds and hearts. He in return is proving himself more than an ordinary advocate taking special delight in coming to the aid of "all" persons in need. No petition seems too great for him.

Days: 1  2  3  4  5  7  9

Novena to Saint Jude

Start with:

St. Jude, glorious apostle, faithful servant and friend of Jesus, the name of the traitor has caused you to be forgotten by many. But the Church honours and invokes you universally as the patron of hopeless cases, and of things despaired of. Pray for me who am so distressed. Make use, I implore you, of that particular privilege accorded you to bring visible and speedy help where help was almost despaired of. Come to my assistance in this great need that I may receive the consolation and succour of Heaven in all my necessities, tribulations and sufferings, particularly....(make request) and that I may bless God with you and all the elect throughout eternity. St. Jude, apostle, martyr, and relative of our Lord Jesus Christ, of Mary, and of Joseph, intercede for us! Amen.

DAY ONE


O blessed apostle St. Jude, who laboured zealously among the Gentiles in many lands, and performed numerous miracles in needy and despairing cases, we invoke you to take special interest in us and our needs. We feel that you understand us in a particular way. Hear our prayers and our petitions and plead for us in all our necessities especially . . . .May we be patient in learning God’s holy will and courageous in carrying it out. Amen.

St. Jude, pray for us! My Jesus, mercy!

DAY TWO

O blessed apostle Jude, who has been instrumental in gathering us here together this day, grant that we may always serve Jesus Christ as he deserves to be served, giving of our best efforts in living as he wishes us to live. May we dispose our hearts and minds that god will always be inclined to listen to our prayers and petitions, especially those petitions which we entrust to your care and for which we as you to plead for us. . . .

Grant that we may be enlightened as to what is best for us, in the present and future, not forgetting the blessings we have received in the past. Amen.

St. Jude, pray for us! My Jesus, mercy!

DAY THREE

O holy St. Jude, apostle of Jesus Christ, you who have so faithfully and devotedly helped to spread his Gospel of Light, we who are gathered together today in your honour, ask and petition you to remember us and our needs. Especially do we pray for . . . . May it also please our Lord to lend an ear to your supplications in our behalf. Grant that we may ever pray with fervour and devotion, resigning ourselves humbly to the divine will, seeing God’s purpose in all our trials and knowing that he will leave no sincere prayer unanswered in some way. Amen.

St. Jude, pray for us! My Jesus, mercy!

DAY FOUR

Saint blessed Jude, you were called to be one of Christ’s chosen apostles and laboured to bring men to a knowledge and love of God; listen with compassion to those gathered together to honour you and ask your intercession. In this troubled world of ours we have many trials, difficulties, and temptations. Plead for us in the heavenly court, asking that our petitions may be answered, especially the particular one we have in mind at this moment . . . . May it please God to answer our prayers in the way that he knows best, giving us grace to see his purpose in all things. Amen.

St. Jude, pray for us! My Jesus, mercy!

DAY FIVE

O holy St. Jude, apostle and companion of Christ Jesus, you have shown us by example how to lead a life of zeal and devotion. We humbly entreat you today to hear our prayers and petitions. Especially do we ask you to obtain for us the following favour. . . . Grant that in praying for present and future favours we may not forget the innumerable ones granted in the past but often return to give thanks. Humbly we resign ourselves to God’s holy will, knowing that he alone knows what is best for us especially in our present needs and necessities. Amen.

St. Jude, pray for us! My Jesus, mercy!

DAY SIX

St. Jude, apostle of Christ and helper in despairing cases, hear the prayers and petitions of those who are gathered together in your honour. In all our needs and desires may we only seek what is pleasing to God and what is best for our salvation. These, our petitions. . . . we submit to you, asking you to obtain them for us, if they are for the good of our souls. We are resigned to God’s holy will in all things, knowing that he will leave no sincere prayer unanswered in some way though it may be in a way unexpected by us. Amen.

St. Jude, pray for us! My Jesus, mercy!

DAY SEVEN

O holy apostle Saint Jude, in whose honour we are gathered today, may we never forget that our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ chose you to be one of twelve apostles. Because of this and of the martyrdom you suffered for the Faith, we know you are a close friend of Almighty God. Therefore we do not hesitate to petition you in our necessities, especially. . . . We humbly submit ourselves to the will of God, knowing full well that no sincere prayer is ever left unanswered. May we see god’s good and gracious purpose working in all our trials. Amen.

St. Jude, pray for us! My Jesus, mercy!

DAY EIGHT

O holy Saint Jude, apostle of Christ, pray that we may ever imitate the Divine Master and live according to His will. May we cooperate with the grace of God and ever remain pleasing in His sight. Especially do we ask you to plead for us and obtain whatsoever is necessary for our salvation. Forget not our special petitions. . . . May we always be thankful to God for the blessings we have received in the past. Whatsoever we ask for the present or future, we submit to the divine will, realizing that God knows best what is good for us. We know He will respond to our prayers and petitions in one way or another. Amen.

St. Jude, pray for us! My Jesus, mercy!

DAY NINE

O holy Saint Jude, apostle and martyr, grant that we may so dispose our lives that we may always be pleasing to God. In working out our salvation in this life we have many needs and necessities. Today we turn to you, asking you to intercede for us and obtain for us the favours we ask of God. Especially do we petition for . . . .

May we not so much seek temporal good but rather what will avail our souls, knowing that it will profit us nothing if we gain the whole world yet suffer the loss of our soul.

Therefore, may we incline ourselves toward the divine will, seeing God’s good and gracious purpose in all our trials. Amen.

St. Jude, pray for us! My Jesus, mercy!