Why is St. Jude Thaddeus celebrated?
Thousands of parishioners crowded downtown Mexico City to give thanks for the miracles of St. Jude Thaddeus, considered the patron saint of lost or impossible causes.
Every October 28, thousands of parishioners throng downtown Mexico City to give thanks for the miracles of St. Jude Thaddeus, considered the patron saint of lost or impossible causes. Last year the masses of this festivity were suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but this year 2021 the churches are once again crowded with the devotees of St. Jude Thaddeus.
In Mexico City, every October 28, thousands of devotees flock to the Temple of San Hipolito, in the heart of the capital and a place dedicated since 1982 to St. Jude Thaddeus, one of the apostles of Jesus of Nazareth. It is a tradition that in the vicinity of the temple parishioners are giving holy cards, rosaries, and even food to the rest of the devotees, while many come dressed in the white tunic and green shawl characteristic of this saint.
The church celebrates this October 28 the feast of St. Jude Thaddeus, Apostle of Christ, presented in the Gospels as the "brother of St. James". The Catholic Church has explained that St. Jude Thaddeus is often confused with Iscariot, but Thaddeus was the brother of James. St. Jude Thaddeus is also a cousin of Christ, who died a martyr's death, unlike Judas Iscariot who, although he was an apostle, is considered a traitor of Jesus.
The devotion to St. Jude has given rise to certain "deviations" that the church has opportunely clarified. In 2008, through a communiqué entitled "Saint Jude Thaddeus and some deviations of his cult", the Primate Archdiocese of Mexico clarified that Saint Jude Thaddeus is not the "saint of criminals or drug traffickers"; and that his devotion is not compatible with the cults related to the so-called "Santa Muerte", a phenomenon that does not belong to the Catholic identity either.
The Archdiocese is further detailed that "the church encourages popular manifestations of authentic devotion", but that "in some cases -such as those mentioned- there are serious incompatibilities" with the teachings of the Church. October 28 is relevant because it is the day on which the murder of St. Jude Thaddeus and St. Simon (who is also venerated on this date) is remembered.
On this day, the parishioners go to the church of San Hipólito, because since 1982 an image of San Judas Tadeo was placed there on the main altar, the reason why today it is popularly known as the "Temple of San Judas Tadeo" or "San Juditas". The church of San Hipolito is located on a corner of the Alameda Central in Mexico City and was built to commemorate the capture of Tenochtitlan.
It was built over a hermitage that Hernán Cortés had ordered to be built in commemoration of the Spanish fallen during the Noche Triste (defeat of the Spanish against the Mexica forces in 1520). The construction of the temple began in 1599 and was completed in 1740. Although the saint's day of San Judas Tadeo is October 28th, the devotees have made this festivity take place every 28th of the month.
St. Jude Thaddeus is venerated by those with a problem that has an impossible solution. This belief, according to the Catholic Information Agency (ACI), is because St. Bridget of Sweden, patroness of Europe, noted that Jesus told her that when she needed 'complex' favors, to go to the patron remembered on this day.
Source: Expansion
