National Shrine of Saint Jude Thaddeus

Saint Jude Parish
National Shrine of Saint Jude Thaddeus

Upper façade of the shrine, with a statue of its patron saint. Note the bilingual sign in English and Chinese.
Saint Jude Parish

Location within Metro Manila

14°35′49″N 120°59′44″E / 14.596980°N 120.995457°E
Location José Laurel Street, San Miguel, Manila
Country Philippines
Denomination Roman Catholic
Website www.stjudemanila.com
History
Former name(s) Espíritu Santo Chinese Parish
Founded February 23, 1963
Consecrated October 23, 1960
Architecture
Status Parish church, national shrine
Style Modern
Groundbreaking September 28, 1958
Administration
Archdiocese Manila
Metropolis Manila
Province Manila
Clergy
Archbishop H.E. Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, D.D.
Rector Rev. Fr. Roland U. Aquino, SVD
Assistant priest Rev. Fr. Ramon Bosch, SVD

The National Shrine of Saint Jude Thaddeus or Saint Jude Parish (originally known as Espíritu Santo Chinese Parish), is one of three Chinese parishes established by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Manila in Metro Manila, Philippines.[1] The shrine has many devotees among students and those reviewing for board examinations, as Jude Thaddeus is considered the patron saint of hopeless cases.[2] The shrine holds its novena service every Thursday to Saint Jude, whose traditional color is green.

History

Background

During the Spanish colonization of the Philippines, the Dominicans built their dwelling places near the homes of the Sangleys (from the Hokkien 生意 sengli, "business" or "trade" [3]).[4] Evangelization of the Chinese started in 1588 but Chinese revolts during the 18th century resulted in the placing of the Chinese ministry under the secular clergy, which led to the attachment of the Chinese parish to Binondo Parish until 1954.[1]

As the Chinese community swelled during those periods, the Binondo Parish (then the only Chinese parish in Manila), was considered insufficient. Thus, the faculty to erect three more Chinese parishes was obtained by Archbishop Rufino Santos from the Roman Consistorial Congregation on July 23, 1954. Those three parishes were to be located in the Paco district of Manila, Pasay and northeastern Metro Manila or Quezon City.[5]

Establishment

After receiving the commission for the churches, the Espíritu Santo Chinese Parish in Santa Cruz was erected. The first rectory was in a portion of Riverside Hospital (now the Saint Jude Catholic School) which was rented for that purpose in January 1955. Saint Jude Thaddeus was made patron saint of the parish after a month by Archbishop of Manila Cardinal Rufino Santos.[5]

Text of the ecclesiastical decree establishing the church as a National Shrine

Cardinal Santos donated a piece of land measuring 2,989.10 sq. meters. The blessing and laying of the church's cornerstone was held there on October 28, 1958. It was then consecrated on October 23, 1960, with then-First Lady Leonila Dimataga-García, who performing the ribbon cutting; at the time, the church had no windows. The St. Jude Annex building was completed and blessed by Msgr. Buenaventura López on February 27, 1968.[5]

Recent history

St. Jude Parish became a territorial parish on June 20, 1986, and was separated from the parish of San Miguel. It was renamed the "Archdiocesan Shrine of Saint Jude" on June 21, 1994, following a petition by Msgr. Peter Tsao and the parishioners,[5] and as a result of the increasing number of devotees that visit the shrine on Thursdays for the weekly novena service.[1] Celebrations for the shrine's diamond jubilee was celebrated on February 2, 2014, led by Cardinal Luis Antonio G. Tagle, Archbishop of Manila.[6]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "History of Saint Jude Parish". National Shrine of Saint Jude Thaddeus. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
  2. ↑ "Churches to visit in QC, Manila". Inquirer.net. Philippine Daily Inquirer. March 27, 2013. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
  3. ↑ "From Sangley to Tsinoy: Journey of Overseas Chinese in the Philippines". Chinatownology. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
  4. ↑ Eugenio Menegon (2009). Ancestors, Virgins, & Friars: Christianity as a Local Religion in Late Imperial China. Harvard University Press. pp. 50–. ISBN 978-0-674-03596-6.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 "History of St. Jude". Filipino Chinese Catholic Community of Saint Jude. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
  6. ↑ "An invitation to the 60th Anniversary Grand Launching". National Shrine of St. Jude Thaddeus. Retrieved 5 December 2014.

External links