Andrew the Strong ~ reflex on Matt. 4:18-22
Today we celebrate the Feast of St. Andrew, who was a follower of John the Baptist; when John pointed to the Lamb of God, Andrew recognized Jesus as the Messiah, and was quick to introduce him to his brother, Simon. Simon would later become the first pope, of course; but both brothers were crucified in witness to Christ.
In today’s Gospel, we witness Jesus’ call to the brothers, right in the midst of their work as fishermen, right as they are casting their nets into the sea. He calls them to follow him, and promises to make them “fishers of men,” a term we have all heard, but which they could not have fully understood. Still, they left their nets “at once…and followed him.” They dropped what they were doing, walked away from the life they knew very well, and entered into the adventure that is the life of faith, without asking any questions or pausing to make any calculations about the future. This is a model for all of us in our walk with Christ – to follow him without any reservations, hesitations, or calculations! The spiritual life requires profound faith and limitless trust, like that of St. Andrew.
The long and rich tradition of the Church means that various places have invoked his intercession for various needs, and so has become the patron saint of Greece (where he probably brought the Gospel), Russia, Scotland (where some of his relics were taken for safety in the 350s; the Scottish flag features St. Andrew’s saltire – X shaped - cross!), Romania, Ukraine, the Amalfi coast, and Barbados, as well as many cities in Spain; he is also the patron saint of singers, spinsters, maidens, fishermen, fishmongers, and women hoping to be mothers, and is invoked against gout and sore throats!
As another part of our tradition, many people pray the St. Andrew Christmas Novena beginning today. It is traditionally prayed 15 TIMES A DAY each day for 25 days, ending on Christmas Eve. It can be a very meditative prayer that helps us to keep the spiritual meaning of this great season alive in our hearts:
Hail and blessed be the hour and moment In which the Son of God was born of the most pure Virgin Mary at midnight, in Bethlehem, in the piercing cold. In that hour vouchsafe, I beseech Thee, O my God, to hear my prayer and grant my desires (mention request), through the merits of Our Savior Jesus Christ and of His blessed Mother. Amen.