Andrew bar-Jonah was born in the village of Bethsaida to Jonah and given a Greek name while his older brother, Simon, was given an Aramaic name. It reflects the mixed Jewish-Gentile environment of Galilee and indicative of a certain cultural openness of his family. His name in Greek, Andreas, means “manly, brave”.
Like his older brother, he was a partnered fisherman with James and John, and their father on the Sea of Galilee.
He was a disciple of John the Baptist which shows that he was searching in his faith. One day he heard the Baptist proclaiming Jesus as “The Lamb of God” and was so stirred as to join another disciple in following Jesus. They saw where He was staying and went with Him that day and became one of Jesus’ closet disciples, even before his brother. Andrew is typically referred to as Protoklete or “First-Called”. He therefore enjoyed precious moments with Jesus. This can be evident from when Philip wanted to speak with Jesus about the Greeks seeking him, but spoke with Andrew first.
He found his brother Simon, and said, ‘We have found the Messiah’ and brought him to Jesus. This shows supernatural revelation given to Andrew after such a short time with Jesus and an unusual apostolic spirit of wanting his brother to share in the discovery, indicating that this grace was overflowing. The brothers do not hesitate to abandon their trade after Jesus asks them to follow Him.
The brother’s house in Capernaum became the base of operation for Jesus’ ministry throughout Galilee.
It was Andrew who pointed out to Jesus the presence of a young boy who had with him 5 barley loaves and 2 fish and had asked, ‘but what good is that for so many?’ It was also Andrew, along with Peter, James, and John to ask Jesus when the massive walls of the Temple would be torn down and what the sign would be. From these events, we can deduce that we should not be afraid to ask Jesus questions but at the same time, be ready to accept the surprising and difficult teachings that He offers us in response.
His brother, Peter, traveled from Jerusalem through Antioch and reached Rome to exercise his Universal, “Katholikos” mission. Andrew, instead, became the preacher and interpreter of the Gospel to the Greeks and therefore is considered the Apostle to the Greek world.
Andrew was condemned to death at Patras in Greece and was to suffer the torture of crucifixion. Like his brother, he asked to be put to death on a cross different than that of Jesus as he deemed himself “unworthy to be crucified on the same type of cross as Jesus.” In his case it was X-shaped or a “saltire” and he was bound instead of nailed. It has been known as “Saint Andrew’s Cross’. He did not view it as an instrument of torture, but rather as the incomparable means for perfect configuration to the Redeemer, to the grain of wheat that fell into the earth.
His remains were originally preserved in Patras but many of the relics were transferred to Constantinople by the order of the Roman Emperor Constantius II around 357. In 1964, Pope Paul VI had all of the relics that had ended up in the Vatican, sent back to Patras in the Church of Saint Andrew.
He is the patron saint of sailors, butchers, farm workers, fishermen, maidens, miners, paralytics, pregnant mothers, singers, textile workers, Scotland, Romania, Russia, Ukraine, and Patras.
His feast day is November 30.
For God’s Glory.
