About the Dominican Shrine of St. Jude Thaddeus
The Shrine of St. Jude Thaddeus is a ministry of the Dominican Friars of the Province of St. Albert the Great, Chicago. In 1926, Fr. William Marchant, O.P., became pastor of St. Pius Church in Chicago. He had a personal devotion to Saint Jude Thaddeus, and opened the Shrine on October 20, 1929.
The Dominican National Shrine of St. Jude was opened in 1929 within St. Pius V Parish and is home to the arm of St. Jude, reported to be the largest relic of an apostle outside of Rome, as well as three smaller relics of the Saint.
Originally, the Shrine consisted of a simple altar and a freestanding, five-foot statue of St. Jude. In 1939, the walls of the church niche were faced with green Alpian Italian marble, and the vaulted ceiling was faced with Venetian mosaic.
Then, in honor of our 20th anniversary in 1949, an entirely new Shrine (the present one) was sculpted from Italian marble by the Daprato studio. The central figure is St. Jude looking down upon the “Peoples of the World” – a working man in overalls, a mother with her baby, a business man, a young woman, a nurse, a doctor, a Dominican Friar and a Dominican Nun.
Each day, at least 200 people visit the Shrine, asking St. Jude to help them in their needs or thanking St. Jude for the help they have received. Each week, they receive nearly 2,000 prayer requests from people seeking help in the troubled areas of their lives. Many people who send their prayer requests later write to express their thanks for an answer to their prayers.
Each year since the Shrine opened in 1929, Saint Jude has continued to earn the title “Saint of the Impossible!”
There is also a Saint Jude gift shop located in the vestibule of the Church.
Traveling to the Dominican Shrine of St. Jude Thaddeus:
The is located in the Church of St. Pius V on the corner of 19th Street and Ashland Avenue, on Chicago’s near southwest side. They offer secure parking directly across from the church. You can access the lot by using the speaker box at the gate. Simply tell the person who answers you are there to visit the Shrine.
Address: 1909 S. Ashland Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60608
Tel: +1 ( 312) 226-0020
Click here for the official website of the Dominican Shrine of St. Jude Thaddeus in Chicago
