Please join us for a very special Solemn Novena to St. Jude Thaddeus, our patron saint, for nine consecutive evenings, beginning October 20 and ending on the Feast of Sts. Simon and Jude, October 28!
St. Jude is a powerful intercessor for those who pray to him for "desperate cases." Come with any intentions, large or small, or simply to honor our benevolent Patron Saint.
Daily Schedule, beginning at 7pm each evening:
Join us in this beautiful devotion to
Our Lord truly present in the Blessed Sacrament.
Please sign up in the Narthex or with our signup genius below for a time slot so that someone is keeping the Lord company at all times.
Adoration will take place each day:
October 20: beginning after 10:30am Mass
October 21 and 22: beginning after 9:00am Mass
Evening services begin at 7pm. The evening will include recitation of the St. Jude Novena, Scripture reading and homily, ending in Benediction and veneration of the St. Jude relic. A Eucharistic Procession will take place, outside weather permitting, on the final evening of 40 Hours.
Biography:
I am the 7th of 8 children from St. Dominic Parish in Northeast Philadelphia. My father was a Philadelphia firefighter and my mom was a Catholic school teacher. I graduated from Father Judge High School in 2014. After a year at Arcadia University, I transferred into St. Charles Seminary. I graduated from the college Seminary in 2018 and was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia in 2023. I am currently the Parochial Vicar at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish in Doylestown.
Theme for 40 Hours talks:
Mark 10: 46-52 (The story of Blind Bartimaeus). Specifically, Jesus' question in verse 51, "What do you want me to do for you?"
40 Hours Devotion is a 40-hour period of continuos prayer made in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament in solemn exposition. The Eucharist is "the source and summit of the Christian Life." (CCC 1324)
The 40 Hours Devotion existed in Europe since the 1500s but was instituted in America in the 1850’s by our own St. John Neumann, fourth Bishop of Philadelphia. The purpose of 40 Hours Devotion is to deepen our personal relationship with Jesus through dedicated time of communal and individual Adoration and prayer before the Blessed Sacrament.
If you grew up in Philadelphia, you might remember that our churches were always filled for the 40 Hours Devotion. Families prioritized 40 Hours as an important devotion, making a conscious effort to attend as a family. To help foster that practice here, no other parish activities take place during these nights so that we are not competing with spending valuable time with Our Lord.
Please bring your families to pray before the Lord and grow in faith through our reflections and Confession.