St. Jude Feast Day, October 28: Novena Dates and Customs

The Church celebrates Saint Jude on October 28, and he shares the day with Saint Simon the Zealot. By tradition the two apostles preached the Gospel together and gave their lives together, and their relics rest side by side in Saint Peter's Basilica. The Eastern churches remember Saint Jude on other days, including June 19.

How the day is kept

Many people pray the novena in the nine days leading up to the feast, starting on October 19 and finishing on October 27, the day before. On the feast itself, they go to Mass and give thanks. At the great Saint Jude shrines, the feast draws crowds of pilgrims, many of them carrying a prayer they have held for a long time, and some carrying a thank you.

It is also a good day to keep the promise in the novena prayer, to make known what God has done. If Saint Jude has helped you, the feast is a fitting time to share your story.

You do not have to wait for October

The feast is a beautiful time to pray, but trouble does not keep a calendar, and neither does God's mercy. If you need Saint Jude today, begin the novena today.