Category: Spiritual Life & Devotion
In Catholic tradition, a patron saint is a holy man or woman whose life and intercession are considered especially powerful for particular needs or groups of people. For seemingly hopeless or desperate situations — cases that have exhausted human effort — Catholics have long turned to St. Jude the Apostle and to St. Rita of Cascia, both of whom are associated with the seemingly impossible.
The practice of seeking the intercession of patron saints for specific needs is rooted in the ancient Christian belief in the Communion of Saints: that the faithful departed remain part of the one Body of Christ and can intercede for the living before God. The Catholic Church does not teach that saints answer prayers themselves, but that they bring petitions before God on behalf of those who ask.
Formally proclaimed patronage — sourced from canonized saints in the Roman Calendar.
Saint Rita of Cascia is invoked as patron of lost causes. Saint Rita was born Margherita Lotti at Roccaporena, near Cascia in Umbria, in 1381. Married while still young to Paolo Mancini, she bore him two sons. Sources: https://www.usccb.org/resources/2026cal.pdf.
Saints Simon and Jude is invoked as patron of lost causes. Saints Simon and Jude are listed together at the end of the apostolic catalogues of Matthew (10:4), Mark (3:18), and Luke (6:15-16) and Acts (1:13). Simon is surnamed the Cananaean (from the Aramaic root for zealous) or, in Luke, the Zealot, distinguishing him both from Simon Peter and from Simon, the brother of the Lord. Sources: https://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/audiences/2006/documents/hf_ben-xvi_aud_20061011.html.
Saint Rita of Cascia is the primary patron saint of lost causes. Their feast day is May 22.
A patron saint is a holy man or woman canonized by the Church whose life and heavenly intercession are considered especially powerful for particular needs, groups, or situations. Catholics ask patron saints to intercede — to pray to God on their behalf — drawing on the doctrine of the Communion of Saints.
To ask for a patron saint's intercession, Catholics typically pray directly to the saint, saying something like: "Rita of Cascia, pray for us." You may also light a candle, attend Mass on their feast day, or make a novena — nine days of consecutive prayer — asking for their help before a particular need.