Photograph of an oil painting St. Jude Thaddeus by Georges de La Tour, circa 1615-1620

Jude (Greek: Ἰούδας Ἰακώβου translit. Ioúdas Iakóbou; Syriac/Aramaic: ܝܗܘܕܐ translit. Yahwada) was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus according to the New Testament. He is generally identified as Thaddeus (Greek: Θαδδαῖος; Armenian: Թադեոս; Coptic: ⲑⲁⲇⲇⲉⲟⲥ) and is also variously called Judas Thaddaeus, Jude Thaddaeus, Jude of James, or Lebbaeus. He is sometimes identified with Jude, the brother of Jesus, but is clearly distinguished from Judas Iscariot, the disciple who betrayed Jesus prior to his crucifixion. Catholic writer Michal Hunt suggests that Judas Thaddaeus became known as Jude after early translators of the New Testament from Greek into English sought to distinguish him from Judas Iscariot and subsequently abbreviated his forename. Most versions of the New Testament in languages other than English and French refer to Judas and Jude by the same name. (Full article...)


Attributes: axe, club, boat, oar, medallion
Patronage: Armenia, lost causes, desperate situations, hospitals, St. Petersburg, Florida, the Chicago Police Department, Clube de Regatas do Flamengo from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
See also: Simon the Zealot