A Little Christmas Now

Dear Friend of Our Lady and St. Jude,

In the Broadway musical Mame, just after she has lost her fortune in the Wall Street Crash of 1929, Mame sings to her family in an effort to cheer them up. “ . . . For I’ve grown a little leaner, grown a little colder, grown a little sadder, grown a little older. And I need a little angel, sitting on my shoulder. Need a little Christmas now.”

For many people in our nation and across the world, 2016 has been a tense and difficult year. All of us would do well to remember and celebrate that the Light of Christ has come into our world, that the Savior of all the world has become one of us, one with us, one alongside us. When we could not reach up to God, God came down to us, to eat our food, wear our clothes, walk our earth, know our pain and bear our sadness.

Whenever I think about the crises in our world, I reflect again on our dear friend, Saint Jude. He has a very important role in my life and in my ministry every day of the year. As the Patron Saint of Hopeless Cases, many people rely on Saint Jude to assist them during dark and difficult times. And I find, in the many miracles and testimonies you share with us through your notes and letters, he always delivers!

As a gift to you, the Dominican Friars at the Rosary Shrine of St. Jude will include you and your personal intentions in our Special Christmas Novena of Masses we celebrate every year at St. Stephen’s Church in Jerusalem, beginning on Christmas Day. Please submit your petitons or the names of those you would like us to remember, I’ll be sure they are all included in this Novena.

Sincerely in St. Jude and Christ Our Lord,

Father Gabriel Gillen, O.P.
Director
Rosary Shrine of St. Jude

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