Friday, October 28, 2011

Sts. Simon & Jude

Today the Church remembers and honors two apostles, Saints Simon and Jude. James Kiefer writes:

On the various New Testament lists of the Twelve Apostles (Matthew 10:2-4; Mark 3:16-19; Luke 6:14-16; Acts 1:13), the tenth and eleventh places are occupied by Simon the Zealot (also called Simon the “Cananean,” the Aramaic word meaning “Zealot”) and by Judas of James, also called Thaddaeus or Lebbaeus. …

Some ancient Christian writers say that Simon and Jude went together as missionaries to Persia, and were martyred there. If this is true, it explains, to some extent, our lack of historical information on them and also why they are usually put together.

Simon is not mentioned by name in the New Testament except on these lists. Some modern writers have used his surname as the basis for conjectures associating him, and through him Jesus and all His original followers, with the Zealot movement described by Josephus, a Jewish independence movement devoted to assassination and violent insurrection. However, there were many movements that were called Zealot, not all alike, and Josephus tells us (Jewish War 4,3,9) that the movement he is describing did not arise until shortly before the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD.

Judas (often called Jude in English, but the Greek has Judas) is variously named, but this is not surprising. Before the Crucifixion, there would be a need to distinguish him among the apostles from Judas Iscariot, and after the Crucifixion there would be an additional reason for being emphatic about the distinction. “Thaddaeus” is possibly a variant of “Theudas,” which in turn is perhaps used as a Greek equivalent of “Judas”. … After the Last Supper it was Jude who asked Our Lord why he chose to reveal Himself only to the disciples. He received the reply: “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” (John 14:22f).

The New Testament Epistle of Jude was written by “Judas the brother of James,” which could refer to either Jude. In any case, we commemorate on this day (1) Simon the Zealot, one of the original Twelve; (2) Judas of James (also called Thaddaeus or Lebbaeus), also one of the original Twelve; and (3) Jude (or Judas) the brother of James and author of the Epistle, without settling the question of whether (2) and (3) are the same person.

The Epistle of Jude is a brief document addressed to the Church, and warns against corrupt influences that have crept in. It has some obscure and baffling references to old Jewish traditions, but it includes a memorable exhortation to “contend for the faith once delivered to the saints,” and an even more memorable closing: “Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding great joy, to the only wise God, or Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.”

Let us pray: O God, we thank you for the glorious company of the apostles, and especially on this day for Simon and Jude; and we pray that, as they were faithful and zealous in their mission, so we may with ardent devotion make known the love and mercy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

CALENDAR REMINDERS & UPCOMING EVENTS

WOMEN’S BIBLE STUDY: Sundays at 4:00 p.m. in Sutton Hall. Please join Jillian Bain for this prayerful study of Scripture.

JOINT MISSION EFFORT BETWEEN ST. AUGUSTINE & HOLY SPIRIT IN HOUSTON: The Youth from Holy Spirit in Houston will be at St. Augustine’s on Saturday, 29 October at 10:00 a.m. to help us pack snack bags for the visitors at St. Vincent’s House. We will celebrate Eucharist as well. Please join in if you can.

THE FISH FRY & YARD SALE: Saturday, 5 November 2011, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. (proceeds for Church renovation/maintenance), and we are raffling a 32 inch flat screen TV (for the victims of the wildfires in Texas). We are starting to collect items for the yard sale benefiting the Community Garden so bring in your items. Dinner tickets are $7.50 each and the raffle tickets are $2 each of $5 for 3. The Yard Sale is from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Donations for the yard sale can be brought to the church on Sundays, 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. or you can contact Karen at 409-762-0316 to arrange other times.

PLEASE REMEMBER EVERYONE ON OUR PRAYER LIST especially Hugh who is recovering from surgery, everyone who is addicted to drugs or alcohol, all parishes with search committees as they seek new rectors, for all of those suffering from the wildfires, and in thanksgiving for all that God has done for us.

“Surely it is worthwhile to lay ourselves out with all our might in promoting the cause and kingdom of Christ.” —William Carey (17 August 1761 – 9 June 1834)

Your servant in Christ,

Fr. Chester J. Makowski+
St. Augustine of Hippo Episcopal Church
Galveston, Texas 77550

No comments:

Post a Comment