St. Jude, known as Thaddaeus, was a brother of St. James the Less, and a relative of Our Saviour. He was one of the 12 Apostles of Jesus and his attribute is a club. Images of St. Jude often include a flame around his head, which represent his presence at Pentecost, when he accepted the Holy Spirit alongside the other apostles. Another attribute is St. Jude holding an image of Christ, in the Image of Edessa. Sometimes he can also be seen holding a carpenter's ruler or is depicted with a scroll or book, the Epistle of Jude.

Biblical scholars agree St. Jude was a son of Clopas and his mother Mary was the Virgin Mary's cousin. Ancient writers tell us that he preached the Gospel in Judea, Samaria, Idumaea, Syria, Mesopotamia, and Lybia. According to Eusebius, he returned to Jerusalem in the year 62, and assisted at the election of his brother, St. Simeon, as Bishop of Jerusalem.

Jude was the one who asked Jesus at the Last Supper why He would not manifest Himself to the whole world after His resurrection. Little else is known of his life. Legend claims that he visited Beirut and Edessa and could have been martyred with St. Simon in Persia.

He is an author of an epistle (letter) to the Churches of the East, particularly the Jewish converts, directed against the heresies of the Simonians, Nicolaites, and Gnostics. Though Saint Gregory the Illuminator has been credited as the "Apostle to the Armenians," the Apostles Jude and Bartholomew are believed to have brought Christianity to Armenia, where Jude was rumored to have later been martyred.

Following his death, St. Jude's body was brought to Rome and left in a crypt in St. Peter's Basilica. Today he is buried in the left transept of St. Peter's Basilica under the main altar of St. Joseph in a tomb he shares with the remains of the apostle Simon the Zealot.

Pilgrims came to St. Jude's grave to pray and many reported a powerful intercession, leading to the title, "The Saint for the Hopeless and the Despaired." Two Saints, St. Bridget of Sweden and St. Bernard, had visions from God asking them to accept St. Jude as "The Patron Saint of the Impossible."

Naggulu Parish is the center for St. Jude’s Devotion in Uganda. Pilgrims come from all Dioceses of Uganda and beyond to pray for their needs or to give thanks for favours received through the intercession of the Saint. Most notable are the three solemn annual novenas: (1) March; (2) July; (3) October.

May St. Jude Thaddeus pray for us.

The word succour comes from a Latin word succurro meaning run to help. Naggulu Parish is among the many churches and dioceses dedicated to Our Lady of Perpetual Succour. Being National Shrine of St. Jude, the two saints are our intercessors.

The Icon

The image of Our Lady of Perpetual Succour is an icon and seems to have originated around the thirteenth century. It depicts our Blessed Mother Mary, under the title “Mother of God,” holding the Child Jesus.  The Archangels Michael and Gabriel, hovering in the upper corners, hold the instruments of the Passion:— St. Michael (in the left corner) holds the spear, the wine-soaked sponge, and the crown of thorns, while St. Gabriel (in the right corner) holds the cross and the nails. The Greek initials on top read Mother of God, Michael Archangel, Gabriel Archangel, and Jesus Christ, respectively. The Child Jesus is portrayed contemplating the vision of His future Passion.  The anguish He feels is shown by the loss of one of His sandals.  The icon also conveys the triumph of Christ over sin and death, symbolized by the golden background (a sign of the glory of the resurrection) and the manner in which the angels hold the instruments of passion, i.e. like trophies gathered up from Calvary on Easter morning.

The Child Jesus grasps the hand of the Blessed Mother.  He seeks comfort from His mother, as He sees the instruments of His passion.  The position of Mary’s hands – both holding the Child Jesus and presenting Him to us – convey the reality of our Lord’s incarnation, that He is true God who became also true man.  In iconography, Mary here is represented as the one who guides us to the Redeemer.  She also is our Help, who intercedes on our behalf with her Son.  The star painted on Mary’s veil, centered on her forehead, highlights her role in the plan of salvation as both the Mother of God and our Mother

A brief history

In 1495 the icon was enshrined in a church on the island of Crete. It was brought to Rome towards the end of the fifteenth century and exposed for public veneration in the church of San Matteo (St. Matthew), Via Merulana, between St. Mary Major and St. John Lateran. Crowds flocked to this church, and for nearly three hundred years many graces were obtained through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin. The picture was then popularly called the Madonna di San Matteo (The Madonna of Saint Matthew). The church was served for a time by the Hermits of St. Augustine. These Augustinians were still in charge when the French invaded Rome (1812) and destroyed the church. The picture disappeared; it remained hidden and neglected for over forty years, but a series of providential circumstances between 1863 and 1865 led to its discovery in an oratory of the Augustinian Fathers at Santa Maria in Posterula.

In 1866, Blessed Pope Pius IX entrusted the image to the Redemptorists, who had just built the Church of St. Alphonsus, down the street from St. Mary Major.  As a boy, the Holy Father had prayed before the image in the Church of St. Matthew.  He ordered the public display and veneration of the image, and fixed the feast of Our Lady of Perpetual Help as the Sunday before the Feast of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist.  In 1867, when the image was being carried in a solemn procession through the streets, a young child was cured, the first of many recorded miracles attributed to Our Lady of Perpetual Help.

To this day, the Church of St. Alphonsus displays the icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help and welcomes pilgrims for prayer. 

Naggulu Parish does not hesitate to invoke the prayers and intercession of Our Blessed Mother in time of need.

We continually thank her for being there for us whenever we approach her.