The Lives of the Saints through 100 Masterpieces

Andrew

The Lives of the Saints 28 Andrew November 30 The elder brother of Peter and a disciple of John the Baptist, Andrew was the first apostle to follow Christ. He accompanied him throughout his public life and was present at the baptism of Jesus, at the multiplication of the loaves and fish and at the miraculous catch of fish. Like Peter, he was a professional fisherman on Lake Tiberias. His apostolic activities after the Resurrection were particularly intense. Advancing beyond Byzantium, where he had founded the local church, he reached the land of the Scythians, converting these ancestors of the Burgundians. Then he departed due south for Ethiopia, to the aid of Matthew, who was being held in prison, and there worked a profusion of miracles and conversions. Continuing on to Byzantium, he delivered the town of Nicæa from seven demons before departing to evangelize northern Peloponnese. It was there, in Patras, that he was crucified upon a cross in the shape of an X, the famous Saint Andrew’s cross. At the protests of the people against this cruel torture, the proconsul who had condemned the apostle sought to release him. However, Andrew would have none of it, and no one was able to undo the ties that held him to the gibbet. The Orthodox churches hold Saint Andrew, “the first called,” in particular veneration, partly to counter his brother Peter, much too monopolized and touted by the Romans. Thepatron saint of Scotland, Andrew is also honored as the protector of maritime fishermen Bartolmé Esteban Murillo (1618–1682) The Martyrdom of Saint Andrew Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid ...