Bone from an arm that likely hugged Jesus venerated by over a thousand

By Tanya Connor | The Catholic Free Press
 
WEBSTER – A bone from an arm that likely hugged Jesus was venerated 1,033 times by people over a period of about six hours on Nov. 16 at Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish.
Sacred Heart was the only place in the Worcester Diocese where this relic of St. Jude the Apostle was scheduled to stop during its nine-month U.S. pilgrimage, which began in September. For the pilgrimage, the relic left Italy for the first time, according to the website apostleoftheimpossible.com.
Jude Thaddeus is Christ’s first cousin; “this is how close we are to Jesus,” said Father Carlos Martins, a priest of the Companions of the Cross from Detroit, Michigan, who is taking the relic on the pilgrimage.
Father Brian Hurley, of the Archdiocese of Detroit, assisted Father Martins here. 
They concelebrated a Mass in St. Jude’s honor with Sacred Heart’s pastor, Father Adam Reid. Father Martins preached about St. Jude to a nearly full church.
“God has great plans for you,” he told listeners. “His plan is to turn you into a great saint.” The mark of sainthood is not "never sinning," he said; St. Jude abandoned Jesus at the crucifixion, but accepted forgiveness later. 
“Don’t give up on confession,” Father Martins urged. Don’t give up on “saying ‘yes’ to Jesus,” which is the mark of sainthood.
He told listeners St. Jude brought them each a personal gift, and they should accept it, accept him as their friend and seek his help. 
They were not just venerating bones; St. Jude himself was present, Father Martins said. He encouraged listeners to touch the case which housed the arm-shaped reliquary holding the relic, saying healing comes by touch and that they could make third-class relics by pressing personal items to the glass. 
Devotional items, including a book about St. Jude, sold at Sacred Heart, raised money to support the pilgrimage and the relic’s shrine in Rome.
“It’s such a privilege being Catholic, that we have access to relics,” said Robyn Galbreath, of St. John Paul II Parish in Southbridge, marveling at being able to “touch an arm” that hugged Jesus. She said she loved how Father Martins made that point about the relic.
She had just touched the reliquary’s case with a St. Joseph doll.
“My daughter brought her Mary [doll] earlier, but my son forgot to bring his Joseph,” she explained. She said she and her husband, Bertrand Galbreath, help Mary and Joseph “travel” around the house during Advent, reminiscent of the journey to Bethlehem.
Sean, 11, and Elizabeth “Sissy,” 9, “love learning about the saints and growing closer to God through the saints,” she said. “So they were very excited” to get their own third-class relics with the dolls. They also touched other items to the case.
Asked later about the experience, Sissy said, “It felt cool because I’m not normally able to see one of the apostles’ … relics.” Sean remarked that the reliquary looked “different”; he didn’t know it would be arm shaped.
Thomas Freeman, 3, described the visit simply as “good.” His father, James Freeman, also showed him Sacred Heart’s relic of Christ’s cross, which many people venerated. 
“We’ve enjoyed bringing our kids” - to share the faith and show them its importance at an early age, said his wife, Jacquelyn Freeman, who was carrying their son Nathaniel, 1.
“It’s wonderful that they’re able to bring the relics locally so that people can come to pray,” said Charles Mackowiak, of St. Anthony Parish in Dudley, after he and his wife, Lisa Mackowiak, stopped before the reliquary.
“I just wanted to cry, and I don’t know why,” added his wife. “It’s just touching.”
“I’m glad I didn’t miss this, because it’s not often [relics] come to our little area,” said Donna Joyce, of St. John Paul II Parish in Southbridge.
Sergio and Jennyfher Briseno and their children Emmanuel, 9, and Gloria, 1, came a distance - from Nashua, New Hampshire - to visit the relic, having learned the previous day that it would be in Webster. Mrs. Briseno said they have a very strong devotion to St. Jude; her husband is from Mexico, where this saint is popular.
“It was very important for us to bring our petitions” and petitions of family and friends who couldn’t come, she explained.
Grace Muiruri Ruiz of Sacred Heart said she came to thank St. Jude. 
“It was very beautiful,” she said. “St. Jude is a special saint for us. He has come through for us.” Her children, Nathan, 11, and Nayvalee, 8, were altar servers at the Mass. 
“I think it’s very special that they’re able to have all this,” said Patrick Benoit, 16, of Sacred Heart, expressing hope that healings would result from the evening.
“I was very pleased with what I perceived to be a lot of fruit that came already from hosting the relic, including a large number of confessions,” Father Reid, Sacred Heart’s pastor, said the next day. He said he heard confessions non-stop for three hours.
While on earth, St. Jude brought healing, Father Martins said in his homily. He said King Abgar of Edessa (now in Turkey) wrote Jesus requesting healing, “our Lord wrote a response,” and sent Jude later. Jude laid his arm on the king, who was healed, as were many others in the area.
Between 500 and 1700 A.D. the Church did not have a devotion to St. Jude, because his name was the same as Judas Iscariot, Jesus’ betrayer, Father Martins said. But then he became popular worldwide; people who had no success in petitioning other saints turned to him, and he became the saint of hopeless causes.
The priest ended his homily by telling listeners if they take nothing else from their visit, “make sure you take home this guy [St. Jude] as your friend; you will never, ever, regret it.” The congregation applauded.

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