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Who Is Our Patron Saint?
St. Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was one of the twelve apostles. He and his brother were fishermen. From John's gospel we learn that Andrew was first a disciple of John the Baptist. One day John caught sight of Jesus walking on the road and pointed him out saying, "Behold the Lamb of God!" Andrew seemed to understand right away that Jesus was even more important than the Baptizer and so he left John to follow after the Divine Master. Jesus knew that Andrew was walking behind him, and turning back, he asked, "what are you looking for?" When Andrew answered that he would like to know where Jesus lived, Our Lord replied, "Come and see." After spending a little time in his presence, Andrew realized that Jesus was truly the Messiah. From then on, he chose to follow Jesus. Andrew was thus the first disciple of Christ. Next, Andrew brought his brother Simon to Jesus and Jesus received him, too, as His disciple. At first the two brothers continued to carry on their fishing trade and family affairs, but later, the Lord called them to stay with Him all the time. He promised to make them fishers of men, and this time, they left their nets for good. It is believed that after Our Lord ascended into Heaven, St. Andrew went to Greece to preach the gospel. He is said to have been put to death on a cross, to which he was tied, not nailed. He lived two days in that state of suffering, still preaching to the people who gathered around their beloved Apostle. It is the common opinion that the cross of St. Andrew was in the form of the letter X, composed of two pieces of timber crossing each other obliquely in the middle. St Andrew's Feast Day is celebrated on November 30th. Two countries have chosen St. Andrew as their patron - Russia and Scotland. St. Andrew's Prayer
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