Who Is St. Jude the Apostle and What can we Learn from Him
Overview:
Saint Jude the Apostle is the Patron Saint of Desperate causes and lost causes. Saint Jude is also known as Thaddeus and is one of the 12 Apostles. In the Bible he is referred to as the ‘brother’ of Jesus in passages such as in Luke 6:16 or Matthew 13:55-57. It is vital that he is viewed as wholly distinct from Judas who betrayed our beloved Jesus Christ, Jude Thaddaeus must never be confused with this Judas. As a result we will refer to Jude Thaddeus as Jude Thaddeus or Saint Jude the Apostle. This distinction is duly noted in the book of John in which John refers to ‘Judas not Iscariot’ (John 14:22). Saint Jude has been worshipped by many, often across faiths, and who many have asked to intercede with their prayer to the Lord. Most often these intercessions come in times of desperate need and from a place of pain. The very nature of his name best describes what our most powerful saint and patron acts to do. Jude can be translated to mean giver of Joy, and he most certainly brings Joy and aid to those who are suffering by interceding to God to use his supreme power to aid us. He is mentioned numerous times throughout the Bible, however his most notable contribution is the letter of St.Jude whereby we can understand much of his teaching from him directly as opposed to through the lens of another another apostle. We can now go on to learn about the history and life of St. Jude and his primary teachings.
History and Life:
Traditional belief holds that St. Jude was born into a Jewish family, as many apostles were at the time, in Galilee in a small town known as Paneas. His trade was primarily based in farming as were the majority of his family. In terms of his direct relationship to Jesus, it is difficult to highlight the exact nature of this relationship however, throughout the Bible Jude the Apostle is seen to share close relationship with him. In some places being referred to as the afford mentioned brother while at other times being described to be his cousin with their mothers being sisters. St. Jude then went on to get married and have children, before becoming one of the original Apostles and preaching the news and teaching of Jesus to Jewish individuals throughout Galilee, Samaria and Judea.
After preaching for many years St. Jude became a leader of the ‘Church of the East’ which was established by St. Thomas. Here Saint Jude Thaddeus went on preach in numerous countries such as Libya, Turkey and Persia converting numerous individuals to Christianity and awakening their souls to the light of Christ. He was fundamental in aiding the creation of the Armenian Church and establishing Christianity in areas into the region of the Roman Empire. After his time preaching he went on to write a letter to the Christian converts of many of the Churches of the East. It is with this letter that he provided support and faith to those who were ‘lost causes’ and thus led to him eventually becoming the Patron Saint of desperate cases at the time of the Pentecost. It is after this point which he was known as the Apostle of lost causes. This letter holds a wealth of valuable information and teachings discussed below.
Approximately in the year 65 A.D. Our most dedicated, powerful and special Saint, Saint Jude, is believed to have been killed using an axe or club. His death made him a martyr as he died for his faith in our Saviour Jesus Christ. His body was eventually returned to the Vatican City in Rome and his body todays lied under St Peter’s Basilica. Fundamentally the life of Saint Jude Thaddeus is one of continual sacrifice and dedication to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, culminating in him paying the ultimate sacrifice through dedication to his faith. His life is an exemplary one from which we as Christians can learn a vast amount about how to give back to the Lord and about the modern society we live in with the number of atheist and agnostic individuals.
Key Teachings in The Letter of St. Jude:
We can read the Letter of Saint Jude here: http://bible.oremus.org/?ql=146008380
In The Letter of Jude, we learn of the nature in which society has been perverted by the ungodly individuals that plague society. St. Jude refers to the licentious nature of these individuals and thus the general degeneration of a standard degree of societal morality. It is these individuals that reject the salvation of Christ and Jude Thaddeus calls to us as religious individuals or at the very least believers in him to be aware of these individuals. We are reminded of the omnipotence of God through a passage judging those who teach lies that and reminding us that while God so loves his creation that he saved the individuals of the land of Egypt he equally ‘destroyed those who did not believe.’ Following this is a continuous reminder of the fate of those who indulge in sin and sacrifice their morals in that, according to the Bible, they will be subject to eternal damnation. We are then finally reminded further of the fate of the world and indeed society. We are told that those who plague society in this way will eventually scoff at those of us who hold belief God and further indulge in that which they desire, related to this it is thus our responsibility to attempt to aid the immoral as God is fundamentally forgiving and if we ask those who have sinned to repent, they too may be saved. Saint Jude then states that in the end there will be a great judgement day and this is why we, as believers, hold a responsibility to aid those who are blinded by greed and lust.
Imagery:
Referring ourselves to the image of St Jude depicted on the first page or indeed the image shown below, he can be seen with a flame around his head. This flame is to represent his present at the time of the Pentecost which is when he gained his spiritual power and inherited his divinity by accepting the Holy Spirit. He is also often depicted holding an axe or club of some description. This imagery is to represent the method by which he was killed in becoming a martyr. St. Jude the Apostle is also often seen to be carrying an image of Jesus close to the centre of his chest. This image stems from the story of King Abgar of Edessa whereby the King asked to see Jesus after hearing of his wonderous divine power. King Abgar is said to have hated imagery and pictures of all kinds. Sick with an incurable disease he reached out to Jesus directly through a letter in which he stated belief in Jesus’ divinity and faith in his ability to cure him. He supposedly offered Jesus’ asylum in his land if he were to meet him. Supposedly Jesus declined the opportunity to go but promised that a disciple of his, which was eventually Saint Jude Thaddeus, would visit upon his ascension to Heaven and this Apostle would be endowed with his power. Jesus pressed his face into a cloth and gave it to St. Jude in order to take it to the King. It is this imprinted image that is seen to be carried by St. Jude. To conclude the story, upon delivery of the cloth and seeing the image which Jude Thaddeus brought to the King he was immediately cured and converted to Christianity. The image of Jesus he carries is known as the Image of Edessa.
The above image with credit to Fine Art America, represents perfectly the club used to murder St. Jude and make him a martyr as well as the image of Jesus he holds. The flame above his head is also depicted showing his presence during the Pentecost.