Saints Featured for October 25, 2020 Lesson
The Church Has Heroes Too. Another fun thing to learn about as a Catholic is our friends, the saints. They may have lived in a different time, and some of these saints had a very difficult life, but all tried to live their life for God. Sometimes it is good to spend some time learning about other human beings so that we might learn how to love God more. At the end of every story is a question to help us learn from these Church heroes
St. Simon the Zealot is one of the most obscure apostles. He was one of the 12 main disciples of Jesus Christ, but he plays no particular role in the gospels and is only mentioned by name in lists of the apostles. We know almost nothing about Simon the Zealot. Even his moniker, “the Zealot” is ambiguous enough that we can’t be sure what it means—though there are several strong possibilities. He may have belonged to a Jewish sect known as the Zealots, who were bent on revolution and looking for a Messiah to violently overthrow Rome. Or he may have simply been zealous for the Mosaic Law. Or even zealous for Jesus and his teachings.
Simon is mentioned occasionally in early church writings, but centuries after the gospels were written, Saint Jerome and others mistranslated Simon’s title, believing that Matthew and Mark referred to him as Simon the Cananite or Simon the Cananaean. They assumed he was from Cana—a town within Galilee—or possibly Canaan, an ancient region in the near east which was frequently mentioned in the Bible. This mistake led to the idea that Simon was present at the wedding in Cana in John 2, where Jesus performed his first miracle and turned water into wine, and that he was the same person as Simon, the brother (cousin) of Jesus. There are numerous accounts of Simon the Zealot’s death, but the earliest records come centuries after his death. Like many of the apostles, it’s hard to conclude exactly which tradition (if any) can be trusted.
St Jude Thaddeus is the Patron Saint of Hope and impossible causes and one of Jesus’ original twelve Apostles. He preached the Gospel with great passion, often in the most difficult circumstances. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, he made profound differences in people’s lives as he offered them the Word of God. Through his intercession to Jesus on our behalf, St. Jude takes us into his continuing care. He welcomes our prayers of gratitude to God, our petitions for strength and help, and offers hope for every intention.
The Gospel tells us that St. Jude was a brother of St. James the Less, also one of the Apostles. They are described in the Gospel of Matthew as the “brethren” of Jesus, probably cousins. St. Jude is traditionally depicted carrying the image of Jesus in his hand. This recalls one of his miracles during his work spreading the Word of God.
King Abagar of Edessa asked Jesus to cure him of leprosy and sent an artist to bring him a drawing of Jesus. Impressed with Abagar’s great faith, Jesus pressed His face on a cloth, leaving the image of His face on it. He gave the cloth to St. Jude, who took the image to Abagar and cured him.
After the death and resurrection of Jesus, St. Jude traveled throughout Mesopotamia, Libya, and Persia with St. Simon preaching and building up the foundations of the early Church. St. Jude died a martyr’s death for his unwavering faith. His body was later brought to Rome and placed in a crypt under St. Peter’s Basilica. After his death, many turned to St. Jude for his intercession in prayer. Jesus inspired the devotion to St. Jude for St. Bridget of Sweden when he directed her in a vision to turn to St. Jude with great faith and confidence.
In a vision, Christ told St. Bridget, “In accordance with his surname, Thaddeus, the amiable or loving, he will show himself most willing to give help.” During the Middle Ages, St. Jude was widely venerated, but perhaps because of the confusion between his name and that of Judas Iscariot, he slipped into temporary obscurity. In the early 20th century, St. Jude Thaddeus was relatively unknown to the general Catholic population in the US. Today, millions of people around the world turn to St. Jude, the Patron of Hope, for his intercession and hope.Sometime after his death, Saint Jude’s body was brought from Beirut to Rome and placed in a crypt in St. Peter’s Basilica which was visited by many devotees. Now his bones are in the left transept of St. Peter’s Basilica under the main altar of St. Joseph in one tomb with the remains of the apostle Simon the Zealot. These were moved here on 27 December 1665. Pilgrim Information
More Saint Information
Did you know the word Apostle is made up of 3 words? A – post – le “A” meaning one; “le” meaning who is, and “post” or sent. [Think of a post card or the post office] So an Apostle is “one who is sent.” Where is the Lord sending you?
Read more about popular saints from Catholic Online.
You might want to incorporate a coloring page. Saint Coloring Pages for Kids
Optional activities and resources that compliment this lesson can be found on the links below.
God’s Word
Saints of the Week
Family Activities
Additional Videos and Resources
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