Some scholars believe he is the same person as Jude, brother of Jesus, who is traditionally regarded as the author of the Epistle of Jude. His name, ‘Jude’ actually means ‘the giver of joy’, while his last name, ‘Thaddeus’, means ‘kind, amiable.’ Some experts opine that he was given this last name in order to distinguish him from Judas Iscariot. Jude the apostle, also referred to as Jude of James, Judas of James, Thaddeus, Judas Thaddeus, and Lebbaeus was one of the twelve main disciples of Jesus Christ. There is an Apostle Jude in some lists of the Twelve, but not in others. He is the reputed author of the canonical Letter of Jude that warns against the licentious and blasphemous heretics. It is not clear if Jude, the brother of Jesus, is also Jude, the brother of James, or Jude the Apostle, son of Mary mother of James the less and Jude. He is called Jude of James. St. Jude, also called Judas, Thaddaeus, or Lebbaeus, (flourished 1st century ce; Western feast day October 28, Eastern feast days June 19 and August 21), one of the original Twelve Apostles of Jesus. St. Jude, also known as St. Jude Thaddeus, was one of the twelve apostles (disciples) of Jesus Christ. He received only a handful of mentions in the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke), the gospel of John, and the book of Acts. He was given this name to … This Jude was the writer of the Letter of Jude in the New Testament, also known as Thaddeus meaning brave hearted, courageous. Unlike the apostles Peter and John, the Apostle Jude was one of Jesus’ most mysterious and lesser-known disciples.