Saint Jude Parish was established December 12, 1973 by the Most
Reverend Walter W. Curtis, Bishop of Bridgeport, to accommodate
the growing number of Catholic families moving into Monroe. An
unprecedented plan involved the people of Saint Stephen Parish, Trumbull, Connecticut, in determining its division that resulted
in the formation of the new Saint Jude Parish out of the original
single parish that formerly covered all of the town of Monroe
and part of Trumbull. Under the division plan, Saint Jude Parish
acquired the Saint Stephen School, which became the Saint Jude Parish
Center, and the 17 acres of land. Saint Jude Parish is entirely
within the Town of Monroe from Cutlers Farm Road east.
In selecting the name for the new parish, a unique means was employed
which also involved parishioners. A ballot was provided that
contained the names of 14 saints and Saint Jude was the majority
choice of the people as the name for the new Monroe parish. This
is the first instance of the use of Saint Jude who was one of the
Apostles, as the name for a parish within the Diocese of Bridgeport.
The historical spiritual venture took place in the Saint Jude
Parish Center on December 15, 1973 at the 5:15 Mass whereby Bishop
Walter W. Curtis installed Rev. Arthur Norton as the first pastor
of Saint Jude Parish.
Rev. John Sabia was installed as the second pastor on September
10, 1978. In November of that year a Parish Food Pantry was
established to serve the needy. Ministry of Hospitality was also
formed to welcome people who moved into the Town of Monroe
Since the parish had many young parishioners it was deemed to
have a Summer Vacation Bible School. This would be the beginning
of a long history of Vacation Bible school for Saint Jude Parish.
The Saint Jude Annual Novena was established in the month of October
to prepared for the Feast of Saint Jude on October 28th
With the burning of the mortgage of the rectory, the consensus
of the parishioners was to begin thinking of building a new church.
In November 1980 a Building and Development Committee was formed
to plan for building a Saint Jude Church.
The Mission Committee sponsored the annual Adopt an Appalachian
Child for Christmas benefiting the children of Whitley City,
Kentucky. Now hundreds of children receive gifts each Christmas.
On the tenth Anniversary of the parish the Parish Center was renovated
for weekend Masses. Bishop Curtis celebrated the liturgy for
the dedication of the altar and figure of Christ in Glory on
the reredos of the Parish Center.
Construction of the new church began with the ground breaking
ceremony on November 29, 1987.
The new Saint Jude Church was dedicated on October 28, 1989 at
a special Mass celebrated by the Most Reverend Edward M. Egan,
Bishop of Bridgeport, during which the Altar and the walls of
the church were anointed with holy oil.
Although the Parish Center no longer functions as a church, it continues to serve in many capacities: a meeting place for committees, ministries, and organizations, the Religious Education Department which instructs over 1500 public school students each year in the faith of the Catholic Church, the Saint Jude Nursery School, and Elementary School, which over the years has provided more than 3,200 students with a Catholic education.
The year 2001 saw the completion and dedication of the Saint Jude Social Hall located in the church basement. With the beautiful stained-glass window of our patron saint, it is a wonderful location to enjoy coffee and fellowship after Mass. During the year 2001, we were also able to celebrate the burning of the church mortgage.
The years 2003-2004 saw the redesign and improvement of the sidewalks and plaza around the church.
The Rectory Committee was established on October 4, 2000, to plan for a new rectory for the growing parish. The rectory on Monroe Turnpike was too small to accommodate another priest. Groundbreaking with Bishop William Lori, Bishop of Bridgeport was on March 21, 2004. Dedication of the new Rectory/Office Building by Bishop Lori was June 25, 2006.
