St. Jude Medals and St. Jude in Jewelry
Why do Christians, especially Catholics, pray to saints?
The answer is that prayer to saints, especially prayer to a patron saint, is a request for assistance in presenting our needs and our thanks to Almighty God. In other words, not a prayer to someone other than God, rather a request for an assistant to place our needs before Almighty God,
This is why it is absolutely acceptable for Catholics and most Christians to pray to patron saints. A very much accepted practice.
Why not honor your favorite patron saint with more than prayer, how about something tangible as a constant reminder and inspiration? Objects that come to mind are bracelets, necklaces, rings, statues, medals, pendants and similar items, from very inexpensive to very expensive.
One popular patron saint to focus upon in this regard is Saint
Jude, also known as Saint Jude Thaddeus. He is known as the patron
saint of desperate situations, forgotten causes, impossible causes,
lost causes, hospitals and hospital workers. There are St.
Jude rings available in sterling silver or gold. These are
widely available in a number of styles : basic image of St. Jude,
to a raised image, with or without engraving and with or without
the 9-day Novena beads. Such a ring makes a perfect gift for a
life milestone such as Confirmation, ordination, graduation, commissioning,
achievement, etc. This description is the basic, and each one
is attractive and can become an object of two-fold remembrance,
one of St. Jude and one of the occasion of gifting.
The most traditional St. Jude item is the medal, with
or without chain. As we know gold prices at present are extremely
high. These make wonderful gifts for that special event and especially
that special faith event. Consider gifting these to people of
faith that willingly witness to a Novena answered by God through
the intercession of St. Jude. St. Jude medals are terrific gifts
for a young people receiving the sacrament of Confirmation. Also
for young people heading off to college – the need for St
Jude’s intercession might be very much at hand.
There are a number of St. Jude items moderately priced for gift-giving
or for personal use. Statues are available generally in 3 sizes,
a 3” , 7, or a full 12”. One of these makes a great
accent piece in the home living areas, or a perhaps in an area
set aside for prayer and reflection. Also great for a personal
prayer and reflection area is a St. Jude rosary with picture
in the center and a Novena candle holder around. A St. Jude holy
water font makes a wonderful gift and is also great for personal
home use.
Here are 2 ideas for those situations where a person has experienced intercession by St. Jude, that is,an answer to a Novena request. A commonly accepted part of the traditional approach is to publicly thank St. Jude for his spiritual help. You can distribute St. Jude prayer cards. Hand these out whenever the St. Jude story is told, or simply hand out to friends and strangers. The important part is the commitment to get and distribute the cards in a visible way as a thank you to St. Jude .
Another very public way to inform about St. Jude’s intercession
is to wear a St. Jude pendant on chain.
A commitment can be made to wear until the story is told a certain number of times and removed until the next occasion. The St. Jude imagery becomes the reminder to do public telling; however, a person can certainly wear it daily in tribute to the patron saint.
~ St. Jude - pray for us ~
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