Reflection from Fr. Joseph

Myth #5: The Spanish Inquisition

Is it true that the Church in Spain imprisoned or executed tens of thousands of people, simply because they were Protestant or heretics?

Ah, let’s dive into that, because the mere mention of the Inquisition (including Mel Brooks’ famous scene from “History of the World Part 1”) is fraught with misunderstandings – mainly because of a series of anti-Spanish propaganda called the “Black Legend”.

A “black legend” was a one-dimensional “history” (much of it is made up of falsehoods and generalizations) which purposely seeks to portray one party or character as completely evil and corrupt (this is opposed to the Medieval practice of a “Golden Legend”, which seeks to portray a character or institution as completely perfect). By the late 1800s, scholars were looking back over the histories of the Spanish Inquisition that had been written by early Protestants hoping to smear the Catholic Church, and discovered that these histories did not accurately reflect what did occur with the Spanish Inquisition.

So what was the Inquisition? First, it dates back well before the Spanish. The Popes established Inquisitions beginning in 1184 to make sure that Christendom was united theologically. The Church had already experienced the difficult growing pains of a millennium of heresies – the Arian controversy, iconoclasm, and the Great Schism when the Eastern Orthodox split off and completely divided the West. The Church realized that unity and union was the only way to strength – they couldn’t keep being rocked and shaken to the core by every false teacher that came down the pike.

And the High Middle Ages had their share of strange teachers and thought. Peter Waldo, the Cathars, the Lollards…these movements threatened to fracture the fragile social and religious structure that held Europe together…but only barely.

So the Inquisition was not merely the “thought-police” – it was a way to preserve the difficult political unity that tenuously held Christendom in place. A heresy wasn’t just a wrong teaching – it had political and social repercussions that were long-lasting and often-devastating.

The Spanish had seen this dynamic play out in their own country. Islam had invaded much of the Iberian peninsula, causing not just a theological difference but a clash of civilizations. Knowing the harm that a little heresy could do, in 1480 they began their own version of the Inquisition. It dealt with Jews, Muslims, and heretical Christians – knowing that all three categories could fracture the peace and unity of their country.

It was not the thousands upon thousands of people executed for heresy, however. On average, all of the Inquisitions combined (Spanish and also the other nationalities’) averaged only 14 executions per year. The Inquisitorial courts were actually mild compared to the secular courts; in fact, there are numerous accounts of secular prisoners who would purposely confess a heresy so that they could be transferred to the more merciful Inquisition, which never actually used torture to extract conversions (that was part of the Black Legend). It was actually not priests or monks who ran the Inquisition – it was secular lawyers. Plus, remember that those arrested were not just heretics but traitors when faith and politics were so intertwined.

Now, all this is not to make a defense of the Inquisition as if it were a good thing. No rightly-thinking Christian would advocate for a return of this church court. But when we look back upon that time, we have to see it in context – it wasn’t intended just to be a witch-hunt by Church authorities bent on shoring up their own power. It was rather a civil court (it was instituted by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, not the Church) which knew that in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries – for better or for worse – theology was so wrapped up in politics that a theological disagreement would shatter the fragile peace in which they lived.

The Second Vatican Council document “Dignitas Humanae” outlined the Church’s teaching, which states that everyone has the right to follow their own conscience regarding religion. No one must be coerced to adhere to any certain belief system, but they simultaneously have the duty to ardently seek the truth. Therefore, religious freedom is a human right that needs to be respected.



The Inquisition was certainly not a good thing, but putting it in context helps us understand that in a Medieval world where theology and politics were deeply intertwined, the Inquisition was meant to squelch the political effects of theological errors. In terms of scale, it was never as widespread as rumors have it, nor did it use any crueler torture than the average prison would use. We must understand the context to understand why it came to be and why it did what it did – so that when unbelievers use this as evidence of the corruption of the Church, we can speak up and clarify the often-misunderstood history!

Confession Weekend

Confessions will be available before and after all Masses on the weekend of August 22 & 23rd. Come and cleanse your soul in the mercy of God!

Monday Eucharistic Adoration Resumes on September 14th!

Starting on September 14th, every Monday you are invited to find your peace in Jesus as we resume our weekly Eucharistic Adoration from 9:30am-9pm. Please come and worship our Eucharistic Lord and find the peace and tranquility in the midst of this chaotic world. We need two people to commit to being present at each hour - would you consider being a "guardian" of the Eucharist and having a regular hour of Adoration each week? If so, please sign up here:https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090A45ABA62FA0F49-monday or in the back of church. Spending time with the Eucharist will absolutely change your life - please consider making the commitment to keep him company weekly, and see the joy that comes from His love!

The Annual Parish Italian Festival will take place August 26 thru August 29.

As a result, please note that the 4:30 mass on Saturday August 29 will be at 4:00, not 4:30!

Email familyministry@stjuderc.org if you are interested in volunteering at the music festival - teens and virtus trained adults are needed.

Family News and Events

Consider Joining our Parent Bible Study Group this Fall!


We meet during religious education on Sunday mornings from 10:30 am to 11:15 AM

All are welcome!

Email familyministry@stjuderc.org if you are interetsed or for more information

August Rooted Magazine



Here is the link for August's Rooted Magazine with a link to past issues here.

It is full inspiration for the the month of The Immaculate Heart of Mary

Knights of Columbus News

All men in the parish 18 and over are invited to learn more about the Knights of Columbus. Learn more about our core principles of Charity,Unity,Fraternity and Faith.



Please contact Paul Sideleau at p1aulsr@aol.com for further questions or information.

 The 5th Sunday Family Rosary is scheduled for Sunday August 30 right after the 11:30 AM mass.

Hopeline Pregnancy Center has a continued need for disposable diapers, etc. They are currently low on sizes Newborn,4, 5, & 6, wipes and jars of baby food as well as gently used Baby clothes (boys and girls, up to 18 months), Baby blankets, crib sheets, Onesies, socks, strollers, bottles and pacifiers, strollers, baby toys and baby monitors. They have also requested baby formula such as “Similac 360 Total Care”. Should you wish to help you can leave the diapers, etc. in the outer vestibule of the church. Monetary donations, with checks made out to the Hopeline Pregnancy Center, as well as gift cards from Amazon, Target and grocery stores are most welcome. They may be mailed to: Hopeline Pregnancy Center, PO Box 110658, Trumbull, CT 06611.

 As always, your continued support is greatly appreciated by Hopeline and our Knights of Columbus Council.

Please contact Bob Lux at mjrob08@gmail.com with any questions you may have.

Please remember in your daily prayers:

David Nicolett, Vincent Daniello, Joe Pinto, Daniel Louis Bianco, Max, Hung Vu , Darryl Patterson, Dr. John Kezel, Francisca Testa & Family, Catherine Belanger, Tom Pleva, James Buturla, Patti F, Anne DeVita, Anna Harper, Frank Kerekes, Antonia Tedeschi, Mary McDonald, Douglas Stanley, Jenn Katz, Susan W, Mary Lopresti, Lor C, Janet C, Larry Pisani, Becky M, Vincent Pisani, Greg, Kaiti and Cameron Kessler, Mildred Blasko, Michael Merola & Family, Father Krzysztof, Baby Henry Taylor, Garren Kiett, Viola Cleo Bradshaw, Alice Gumpert, Michael, Donna, Chrystal Archuletta, Lucy Hanson, Jesse Hurst & Family, Maryann Lapinski, Andrea Paddock, Nadine Alusik, Margarida Andrade, John, Jimmy Forno, Matthew Van der Wielen, George N., Milenka Gospic, Benjamin Gray, Chris McCarthy, Leo B., Edward Isales, MaryAnn Voytek, Sal Guerrera, Anne Gulia, Raymond Gosselin, Nancy Czupkowski, Virginia LaQuesse, Ed Marencik, Dan Mongillo, Lawrence Cofone, Mary Witkowsky, John Rizzitelli, Dan Hermansson, Allison H., Dawn S., Sonny T., Nancy St. Pierre

Please join us in praying our Monthly Parish Intention.

Our Petition for August is for our: 35th ST. JUDE PARISH ITALIAN FESTIVAL

We thank God for this opportunity to enjoy amazing food, great rides and activities, and musical entertainment with our families, friends and parishioners, and to welcome the multitude of visitors who join us every year!

We pray, especially, that God bless us with good weather for this year's Festival!...

     We pray to the Lord

Mass Intentions for August 22 – August 30

Sat      Aug 22          4:30pm           Joseph Farrugia

    Sun     Aug 23          7:30am            Mary Margaret DeLorenzo

Sun     Aug 23           9:30am            Joseph Firgeleski

Sun     Aug 23           11:30am          St Jude Parishioners 

                                                           The Venables Family

                                                           Aida Maria Chavez

                                                                                                                                          Mon    Aug 24           9:00am           Blessings for Christine Farmer

Tue     Aug 25 9:00am Rose Rampa    

Wed    Aug 26           9:00am           Peter Zampedri

Thu     Aug 27            9:00am           Blessings for Lawrence Cofone

Fri       Aug 28           9:00am           Blessings for Brenna and Leah Wisdorf

Sat      Aug 29           4:30pm           Lisa Carlson Melanson

    Sun     Aug 30          7:30am           Rino and Jane Servadio

Sun     Aug 30           9:30am           Mareta Fagan

Sun     Aug 30           11:30am          Louis DiMartino 

                                                           Margaret Ann Tranzillo

                                                           Louis V. Ciarmella

Weekday Masses (Monday thru Friday) will be in the main Church at 9 am and live streamed.

The Weekend Masses inside the Church are Saturday at 4:30 pm and Sunday at 7:30, 9:30 and 11:30. Only the Saturday Mass at 4:30 pm and the Sunday 7:30 am and 9:30 Masses are live streamed and may be viewed at https://www.stjuderc.org/view-masses

Saturday Rosary Sign up.

We have a wonderful way to prepare for Saturday Mass and that is to say the Rosary before Mass starts. We start 30 minutes before Mass so we start at 4:00 every Saturday.

Please join us as we pray. Also, please prayerfully consider joining this ministry.

If you would like to join you can sign up at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0d4aa8ad2fa6fccf8-saturday#/

We look forward to you joining us as we pray the Rosary together.

First Friday

Eucharistic Adoration

“Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest”. Matthew 11:28-30



The time that we spend with Jesus in front of the Blessed Sacrament is the best time we will spend on earth. Please join us on the first Friday of every month from 7:00 to 8:00 PM.

Flame of Love Rosary

Thursday mornings after 9 am Mass * on break for summer will resume in September *

"Spread the effect of grace of thy Flame of Love over all of humanity"

flameoflove.us



Divine Mercy Chaplet

Wednesdays at 3 pm in the Church

"Jesus we Trust in You"

thedivinemercy.org

St. Jude Religious Gift Shop

St. Jude Religious Gift Shop is located downstairs in the Msgr. Sabia Social Hall. Fr. Joseph's Books and CD's are available in the Gift Shop. Also new items: Communion Gifts and cards, statues, rosaries and more.

Come in and browse. Call Fran Cambra 203-261-2573 or Parish Office 203-261-6404.

Confession Hours

We are adding an additional Confession time starting February 1, through Easter (at least - if it is popular we will keep it). Monday nights from 8-9pm (the last hour of Adoration). 

Confessions will now be on Saturdays from 3:30-4:30pm and on Monday nights from 8-9pm. 

Confessions are also by appointment, please call 203-261-6404, to set up an appointment or email the office.  

Parish Office Hours

THE OFFICE HOURS ARE:

MONDAY - THURSDAY 9:00 – 3:00

Please call (203-261-6404) or e-mail (ParishOffice@stjuderc.org) before coming to the office. Much can be accomplished through a phone call or email, such as requesting masses/mass cards; sacramental records; registering for Baptism; etc.