The Feast of Saints Simon and Jude,
Apostles
(Ephesians 2:19-22; Luke 6:12-16)
Saints Simon and Jude are among the last
apostles named on lists in the new Testament.
But today’s feast may be observed by more people than perhaps any other
apostle. It is not so much an incident
of the gospel inversion of the last becoming first. Rather, the reason for the reversal is that
St. Jude is thought of as the go-to in hopeless cases.
St. Jude Research Hospital tells how Danny
Thomas as a young entertainer was foundering when he prayed to St. Jude. Thomas told his patron that if he guided him
in life, he would build a shrine to him.
Thomas kept his promise by organizing the funding for a hospital for
children with cancer.
We would be presumptuous to think of our
prayer to a saint as having power over evil.
Indeed, we would be superstitious of thinking of a saint with magical
power. When we ask God, however, or ask
a saint to intercede on our behalf before God, we should expect evil to be subverted. God loves us and always is enabling us to become
more like him. When we cooperate with
His grace with expressions of faith, our situation will surely improve.
