Daily prayer
to St. Jude

O kindSaint-Jude, our faithful intercessor to Jesus, receive the following special intentions : to present them to the Almighty Lord, Root of all good. Above all, grant us an increase of our faith in His love. May each day find us closer in our relationship with our Heavenly Father. KindSaint-Jude, you who has revived hope in our hearts, you whose model merits and life bring us the divine blessings and graces, be our advocate, and lead us to Jesus and Mary. With you, blessed apostle, we give thanks and praise God with all our heart for His innumerable kindnesses. Amen.

The Monthly Note

July - August 2013

by Marcel Dumont, OP

Dear faithfuls of the Great Apostle Jude,

The summer months are among us and many people will take advantage of it to go on vacation to rest a little. For the saints’ intercession, this period is not known, not necessary : they are in good form and active in the celestial Motherland, in order to come to our aid, on this side of the Kingdom. Because, just like the Lord tells us : « My Kingdom is not of this World, but it is among you ». In July, it is given to us to honour one of the great one from the celestial Motherland, Saint Ann, the Virgin Mary’s mother, on July 26th. In Quebec, this devotion is very much alive among the Quebecer and Native people. It comes to us from the French sailors, leaving the coast of Brittany, beseeching the protection of Saint Ann, for their crossing – very perilous, we have to say – until the land of America. From a Sanctuary in Brittany, therefore, dedicated to the Virgin Mary’s mother, came all the way to the hill of Beaupré, near Quebec City, the devotion towards a great protector from Heaven. This is what the Holy Providence wanted for Mary’s Mother, to come to the New World, to continue her intercession, her aid as a grandmother, for all her grandchildren. A devotion, therefore, that leads us directly to her daughter, the Mother of God.

As we know it, the 15th of August of each year, the Church offers us the beautiful and great Feast of the Assumption: Mary – tells us the declaration of dogma in 1950 – was elevated to Heaven near her son, Jesus, Our Lord, with her body and her soul. A strong tradition leads us to believe that she had fallen asleep and was taken away to Heaven by angels. The Church wants to teach us by that, two things. The first is that Mary received this privilege for her honour as Mother of God : immaculately conceived to give birth to the Son of God, therefore without sin, her body could not know corruption. Secondly, Mary is in Heaven, with her Son, to continue her work among us : she continues to give birth to the Holy Church. The Feast of the Assumption is essential for us, it is an confession of our faith : we thank God for the maternity of Mary, Mary Mother of God and Mary Mother of the Church.

Oh our fatherSaint-Jude, you who understands well these deep mysteries, now that you are in Heaven with the Mother of God, help us to enter in the intelligence of our faith!