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ST. JUDE CHRONICLE Shrine of St. Jude Thaddeus THE DOMINICANS 1909 S. Ashland Chicago, IL 60608 |
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A Message From Father BedeMay, 1998Dear Friends of St. Jude,With the exception of the feast of St. Jude Thaddeus in November, the only Solemn Novena that accompanies a special event is the May Novena (May 6-14) observing Mother’s Day.
How appropriate it is that in the month of May we offer our prayers for our mothers and honor them during the May Novena.
We bring our mother to prayer, she who gave life to us, carried us, nurtured us, and formed us for life. I often think of the mother who visits her sleeping infant at night and blesses her child with her silent prayer. I think too, of the mother who visits a sick child and seeks the intercession of St. Jude to bring comfort and healing.
We hope you will enjoy the enclosed Mother’s Day card. It is for you, if you are a mother, or you may send it to your mother, or some mother who is dear to your heart.
Happy Mother’s Day to all who are the givers of new life.
In Jesus' name, Rev. Bede Jagoe, O.P., Director
P.S. We are happy to announce the arrival of our new St. Jude Novena Prayerbook. You may order it in English or in Spanish. The cost is $3.00 ea. or $2.50 ea. in quantities of 3 or more.
COMING TO OUR SENSES
Some time ago a woman was telling me a sad story about someone who was making very bad decisions that affected his life and the lives of the people closest to him. Finally he "woke up." The way she puts it was, "he came to his senses."
What are the senses that we can come back to? There are five: seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, and tasting. Little children are very good at experiencing the world with their senses, but often when we grow older we become ungrounded and just live in our heads. It is a healthy direction to come back to our God-given abilities to touch, see and listen.
There is an important spiritual component in living through our senses. Through them we experience openings to God. The unseen God manifests Himself through all of creation. The sun, the moon and stars, great bodies of water, teeming life, people laughing, crying, loving, searching and playing. To try to experience God by ignoring His creation would be as futile as trying to connect with a friend without paying attention to their face, the sound of their voice, their expressed thoughts and feelings.
To show how important our senses are, the God who made the buzzing bees, the babbling brooks, who juggles planets and laughs through the mouths of children, became a human being to be heard, seen and touched. He did this in Jesus. This is why Jesus is sometimes called the first sacrament.
The church continues Jesus’ ministry of helping us experience God through creation. The sacraments and sacramentals sanctify us by emphasizing our bodies and our senses. Hence, we have salt placed on our tongues, oil on our hands, and water on our heads. We eat the sacred bread and drink the holy wine. All of the sacraments and sacramentals help us "come to our senses" - and to God.
Spring time, when the flowers are blooming, soft winds are blowing, and all is coming alive, is a grand occasion for us to allow our senses to open up to God’s movement in our midst. May we be a sacramental people who appreciate creation both, in our formal church celebrations and in our everyday lives.
| In Christ's love, |  |
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| Fr. Richard de Ranitz |
Father de Ranitz is a member of the Shrine of St. Jude Staff. He also gives retreats and workshops on physical, mental and spiritual health.
HE IS RISEN!
With the raising of Jesus from the dead, we come to the
springtime of life. He who suffered, died, and was buried, is
risen and lives among us. In the spring
we become an Easter people, a people
of the resurrection.
Pentecost brought us to see that through the power of the Holy Spirit we can carry out the mission of Christ and bring in more forcefully the kingdom of God reigning among us.
The Good News of our salvation is the seed planted in this springtime of our life. That seed is to be nurtured and watered by us. With the power of the Holy Spirit we can preach the Gospel of peace by the witness of our life, and our service to those in need. How well our life fits into our devotion to St. Jude. Hundreds of petitions come to us, seeking prayers for multiple inten-tions. To bring prayer together with service is the experience of the Risen Lord among us. No matter our age, this is the springtime of our life.
MAY NOVENA
Aniedi Okure, O.P., a Dominican priest from Nigeria.
Aniedi Okure was ordained on April 12, 1980. He has
worked in campus ministry and hospital chaplaincy in
Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo, and has
preached extensively throughout the United States.
Since 1995, he is the Coordinator of Ethnic Ministries
at the National Conference of Catholic Bishops &
United States Catholic Conference in Washington, D.C.
Guest Preacher
FRIENDS OF ST. JUDE REPORT ... WHAT GOD HAS DONE
H.B.
Thank you St. Jude for the sale of my brother’s old house. He sold it to a young man whose name is Matt and he is on the police force.
R.H. Rockford, IL
Three months age I became ill with ulcerative colitis, my son lost his job and my son-in- law's place of work closed down. I am now doing well and both my son and son-in-law have jobs. Thank you St. Jude.
S.R. Montgomery, IL
St. Jude helped us to obtain a new home for us. He touched the people here. I would like to thank St. Jude for all the times my prayers have been answered, especially for my husbands health (diabetes) and also for my daughter, who lost her husband in an accident. St. Jude was and still is with her.
G.R.
When my daughter almost lost her house, she was able to obtain a loan to save it. Most recently my granddaughter ran away from home, she was gone 3 weeks. She was kept safe and returned home. Thank you St. Jude.
Many people write asking us to publish their thanks. So, please tell us your story of how St. Jude has helped you. We cannot publish all those letters that just say "thank you" without giving details. (Also, we do not publish anonymous stories.) It's your story that gives others hope!
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St. Jude Legacy Club The St. Jude Legacy Club is our special way of recognizing those people who have remembered us in their will. On the 28th of each month, all the members are remembered in a Mass celebrated at the altar of St. Jude in the Vatican. If you have remembered us in your will and we have not listed you as a member of the St. Jude Legacy Club, please let us know. If you have not yet remembered us in your will but would like to do so, please contact us for details. Our legal title is:
Dominican Fathers
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