POWERFUL NOVENA TO SAINT JUDE THADDEUS, PATRON OF HOPELESS AND DESPERATE CASES: DAY 1

(For all families – that they may continually grow in faith, hope and charity)

O God, come to my aid+
R. O Lord, make haste to help me.
V. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
R. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Hymn

Apostle of Jesus,
A witness to his Word
As helper of the needy,
Jude’s name is ever heard;
A preacher of the Gospel
To poor and blind and lame,
A worker great of wonders
In Jesus’ Holy Name.

All praise to the Father
And to his Son, Our Lord,
And to the Holy Spirit
Whose strength we have implored,
With all the saints in heaven
We join our voice as one
To pray as Jesus taught us,
Thy will be ever done.

Daily Prayer to St. Jude Thaddeus

Most holy Apostle Saint Jude Thaddeus, faithful servant and friend of Jesus, the name of the traitor who delivered the beloved Master into the hands of His enemies, has caused you to be forgotten by many but the Church honours and invokes you universally as the patron of hopeless cases, of things despaired of. Pray for me who am so miserable; make use I implore you, of this particular privilege accorded to you, to bring visible and speedy help, where help is almost despaired of. Come to my assistance in this great need that I may receive the consolations and succour of Heaven in all my necessities, tribulations and sufferings, particularly (here, make your special request) and that I may bless God with you and all the elect forever. I promise you, O Blessed Saint Jude, to be ever mindful of this great favour and I will never cease to honour you as my special and powerful patron and to do all in my power to encourage devotion to you. Amen.

Scriptural Meditation
(Introduction to the Epistle of St. Jude)

As we journey with this powerful apostle and martyr of our Lord Jesus Christ for 9 days, I shall expose from the truth of Sacred Scripture, his life, writings, works and influence in the early Church – Fr. Chinaka, OSJ

Authorship of the Epistle, and brief biography

In the address of the Epistle the author styles himself “Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James.” It is pertinent to note that the title “Servant of Jesus Christ” denotes “apostolic minister or labourer.” He also denotes himself as “Brother of James.” This James is to be identified with the Bishop of the Church of Jerusalem (Acts 15:13; 21:18), spoken of by St. Paul as “the brother of the Lord” (Galatians 1:19), who was the author of the Catholic Epistle of St. James, and is regarded among Catholic interpreters as the Apostle James the son of Alphaeus (St. James the Less).

Most Catholic commentators identify Jude with the “Judas Jacobi” (“Jude, the brother of James”) of Luke 6:16 and Acts 1:13 — also called Thaddeus (Matthew 10:3: Mark 3:18) — referring the expression to the fact that his brother James was better known than himself in the primitive Church. This view is strongly confirmed by the title “the brother of James”, by which Jude designates himself in the address of his Epistle. If this identification is proved, it is clear that Jude, the author of the Epistle was reckoned among the Twelve Apostles.

In relation to his biography and background, we see a close link with our Lord Jesus Christ. First, St. Jude Thaddeus was born in Cana, Galilee. His father was Alphaeus, also called Cleophas, brother of Saint Joseph; needless to say, Jude Thaddeus and our Lord Jesus Christ were cousins. His Mother is Mary of Cleophas, who was the sister-in-law of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who also stood by the Cross of Jesus, sharing in his pain as we read in the Gospel of John (19:25), and was one of the women who they accompanied Jesus during his public life, and followed him till the end – calvary.

People traditionally invoked the intercession of St. Jude when their need was at its greatest. He is known as the patron saint of the impossible. The origin of this belief lies in the fact that the name Jude and Judas are really the same (the English language used Jude for a distinction from Judas Iscariot; but in Latin and other languages, Judas is used for both). As a result,  people were reluctant to pray to Saint Jude in case they ended up praying to Judas the traitor unless they were desperate and all other options had failed, then they turned to Jude (Judas) Thaddeus and received graces. This is why he is known as the patron of hopeless and desperate cases (saint of the impossible).

Pause for a moment…

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

DAY 1 PRAYER

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 for all families – that they may continually grow in faith, hope and charity. May we be patient in learning God’s holy will and courageous in carrying it out. Amen.

Our Father…3 Hail Marys…Glory be…

LITANY OF ST. JUDE

Lord, have mercy on us.

Christ, have mercy on us.

Lord, have mercy on us.

Christ, hear us.

Christ, graciously hear us.

God the Father of heaven, have mercy on us!

God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us!

God the Holy Spirit, have mercy on us!

Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on us!

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us!

All you heavenly powers and saints of God, pray for us!

St. Jude, relative of Jesus and Mary, pray for us!

St. Jude, raised to the dignity of an apostle, pray for us!

St. Jude, who had the honour of beholding the Divine Master humble Himself to wash his feet, pray for us!

St. Jude, who at the Last Supper received the Holy Eucharist from the hands of Jesus, pray for us!

St. Jude, who after the profound grief which the death of your beloved Master caused you, had the consolation of beholding Him risen from the dead and of assisting at His glorious Ascension, pray for us!

St. Jude, who was filled with the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, pray for us!

St. Jude, who preached the Gospel in Persia, pray for us!

St. Jude, who converted many people to the Faith, pray for us!

St. Jude, who performed wonderful miracles in the power of the Holy Spirit, pray for us!

St. Jude, who restored an idolatrous king to health, both of soul and body, pray for us!

St. Jude, who imposed silence on demons, and confounded their oracles, pray for us!

St. Jude, who foretold to a weak prince an honourable peace with his powerful enemy, pray for us!

St. Jude, who took from deadly serpents, the power of injuring men, pray for us!

St. Jude, who, disregarding the threats of the impious, courageously preached the doctrine of Christ, pray for us!

St. Jude, who gloriously suffered martyrdom for the love of your Divine Master, pray for us!

Blessed Apostle, with confidence, we invoke you!

Blessed Apostle, with confidence, we invoke you!

Blessed Apostle, with confidence, we invoke you!

St. Jude, help of the hopeless, aid me in my distress!

St. Jude, help of the hopeless, aid me in my distress!

St. Jude, help of the hopeless, aid me in my distress!

Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us!

Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, graciously hear us, O Lord!

Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, grant us peace!

Pray for us o most gracious St. Jude, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

LET US PRAY:

O, Saint Jude Thaddeus, cousin of Jesus Christ, glorious apostle and martyr, renowned for virtues and miracles, faithful and prompt intercessor of all who honour you and trust in you. You are a powerful patron and helper in grievous afflictions. I come to you and entreat you from the depths of my heart to come to my aid with your powerful intercession, for you have received from God the privilege to assist those who almost despair of all hope. Look down upon me, my life is a life of crosses; my days are days of tribulation; my paths are strewn with thorns, and scarcely one moment passes but is a witness of my tears and sighs.

Overwhelmed by these thoughts, I see myself surrounded by a dark cloud. You cannot forsake me in this sad plight. I will not depart from you until you have heard me. O hasten to my aid. I will be grateful to you all my life. I will honour you as my special and powerful patron, I will thank God for the graces bestowed upon you and will propagate your honour and devotion according to my power. Amen.

PRAYER TO SAINT JUDE THADDEUS FOR URGENT FINANCIAL HELP (Optional)

Saint Jude Thaddeus, Apostle of Christ and glorious Martyr, great intercessor in all difficult problems. Today I turn to you with great faith to ask for your generous assistance for I am afflicted and tormented by the lack of economic means. You who are my beloved saint, my blessed patron and noble protector welcome my soul and my body, my mind, and heart; I humbly prostrate before you, ask by the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, that you cast me a compassionate glance and despise not my heartfelt prayer, so my confidence be not in vain. You who, in addition to a singular love, were united with links of kinship to the Divine Redeemer Jesus Christ, source of all good, and are a powerful aid of the desperate. Pray for me my patron saint, my aid, so that, assisted by your precious intercession, I may receive a prompt and efficacious solution for my overwhelming needs. Make it so that I can obtain urgently, needed cash to meet all my expenses, payments, debts, and have peace of mind and tranquillity. Make it so, I beg you, with the certainty of being heard, that I obtain what I need so much: (Ask for everything that you want to attain) Blessed Saint Jude, I honour you with special affection and devotion, hand me the presence and strength of God. Protect me in all circumstances, may your help and consolation never cease. Obtain for me by the grace of the Lord Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, the grace to embrace the cross and challenges when they come inasmuch as we pray for deliverance, prosperity, work, and health; make it so that well-being is installed in my home. As an expression of my affection and gratitude, I promise you I will promote an authentic devotion to you, and already from this moment, I infinitely give you thanks for all your favours. So be it. Amen.

Concluding Prayer

O admirable Saint Jude Thaddeus, who, fully believing in the Master’s words, remained a faithful evangelizer of the peoples, show us the joy of serving more, believing in the words of the Holy Gospel and, living out the gospel values to the glory of God. Grant that as we go to bed tonight, we may be filled with joy and peace of one who has already received favours from God through your intercession. We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen

(If possible, kindly accompany this novena with the Holy Rosary at any hour of the day, either 5 or 10 or 15 or 20 decades…)

May the Divine assistance remain always with us, and may the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace. Amen.

Blessing+
Through the intercession of the holy Apostle and martyr, St. Jude Thaddeus, may the Lord bless + us, keep us from all evil, and bring us to everlasting life. Amen.

Great job praying Day 1! Click here for Day 2 Prayers

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