Liturgical Colour : Red
Psalm 18 : 2-3, 4-5
The heavens declare the glory of God; the firmament proclaims the work of His hands. Day talks it over with day; night hands on the knowledge to night.
No speech, no words, no voice is heard – but the call goes on, throughout the universe, the message is felt to the ends of the earth.
Liturgical Colour : Red
Romans 10 : 9-18
You are saved, if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord, and, in your heart, you believe that God raised Him from the dead. By believing from the heart, you obtain true righteousness; by confessing the faith with your lips, you are saved.
For Scripture says : No one who believes in Him will be ashamed. Here, there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; all have the same Lord, Who is very generous with whoever calls on Him. Truly, all who call upon the Name of the Lord will be saved.
But how can they call upon the Name of the Lord without having believed in Him? And how can they believe in Him, without having first heard about Him? And how will they hear about Him, if no one preaches about Him? And how will they preach about Him, if no one sends them?
As Scripture says : How beautiful are the feet of the messenger of Good News. Although, not everyone obeyed the Good News, as Isaiah said : Lord, who has believed in our preaching? So, faith comes from preaching, and preaching is rooted in the word of Christ.
I ask : Have the Jews not heard? But, of course, they have. Because the voice of those preaching resounded all over the earth, and their voice was heard, to the ends of the world.
Liturgical Colour : Red
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the feast of one of the great Apostles of Our Lord, one of the Twelve Apostles and in fact the first one among them to be called, that is St. Andrew the Apostle, the brother of Simon, who was later known as St. Peter the Apostle, leader of all the Apostles and the Church. St. Andrew was according to the tradition, one of the disciples of St. John the Baptist, and was one of his disciples that decided to follow the Lord right after He was baptised at the Jordan.
As such, he was the first one of the Apostles to be called and to respond to that call, which is why he is also often known as St. Andrew the First-Called. Through him, he likely introduced his brother Simon, the later St. Peter, as well as the brothers St. James and St. John, the sons of Zebedee to the Lord. They were all fishermen at the Lake of Galilee where they worked and laboured every day. The Lord came by there after His baptism and preparation in the desert, calling the first of His disciples to follow Him.
As one of the Twelve Apostles, St. Andrew was a close confidant of the Lord and was present in much of the Lord’s works and ministry, and he was also present at the most important events in the work of God’s salvation. Receiving the Holy Spirit together with the other Apostles and disciples of the Lord, he was empowered and strengthened to carry out the mission entrusted to him and many others to spread the Good News of God to all the nations and peoples.
According to Church tradition and history, St. Andrew went to far-off regions including the area around the Black Sea and the Caucasus, in what is today Ukraine and Crimean region, spreading the Christian faith and the Good News of God to places as far as the northern reaches of Russia. He also went to Greece and other places in the vicinity, helping to build the foundation of the Church in those places. By tradition, during his journey, he also established the foundation of the present day See of Constantinople, then known as Byzantium at the crossroads of Europe and Asia.
That is why St. Andrew is regarded as the Apostolic origin of the current Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, the second most important See in Christendom and also the leader of our separated brethren in the Eastern Orthodox communion. St. Andrew meanwhile was arrested and martyred in the city of Patras in the Peloponnesus region of Greece, for his perseverance in evangelisation and preaching the Good News among the pagans and many people. He was crucified on an X-shaped cross which is now popularly known as St. Andrew’s cross.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we recall the life, work and ministry, the faith and dedication showed by St. Andrew in his mission and life today on his feast day, in fact all of us are also called to reflect on our own lives and our own mission that has been entrusted to each one of us as fellow disciples of Christ. What St. Andrew had done in his life and ministry is part of the greater works and efforts of the Lord through His Church to bring His truth, salvation and Good News to more and more people, and this work is still far from being done.
Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, just as the Lord has called His disciples and Apostles from various backgrounds, empowered them and gave them the mission to evangelise the Good News, then through our baptism we too have been called to be missionaries of our faith, the faith that we have in the Lord and which we are all called to share with zeal and conviction, and with genuine desire for the salvation of souls and for the love of our fellow brothers and sisters. Are we able to do this, brothers and sisters in Christ? Are we willing to make the commitment to follow the Lord and to do His will in our daily lives?
St. Paul in our first reading today in his Epistle to the Church and the faithful in Rome spoke of are reminded of the faith we have in the Lord and the salvation and wonders that we have received with full assurance from Him. And he reminded us all, the faithful that those who bring with them the message of God’s Good News and truth will be blessed, and God’s grace will be with them. It means that despite the trials and challenges that we may face in our journey as Christians and despite the obstacles we may encounter in our mission as faithful servants of God, we must not be easily disheartened by setbacks and sufferings.
God will be with us and He will be by our side, providing for us and our needs, and even if we suffer, we suffer together with Him, He Who Himself has been persecuted for the truth, and Who had suffered and died for our sake. We do not need to be afraid and be hesitant to stand up to our Christian faith and beliefs, and instead we should inspire one another not just with words, but through genuine actions and commitment in our daily living. After all, it is not by our own power and might that we do the work of God successfully, but God Who empowers us to be His instruments in this world.
Let us all entrust ourselves to the Lord and His providence, and remembering the faith and courage with which St. Andrew, Holy Apostle of Our Lord has laboured hard for the glory of God and for the salvation of all His people, may all of us be inspired to follow in his footsteps and be ever more committed to live our every moment with genuine and devout Christian faith. Let us all make good use of this season of Advent to prepare ourselves wholly, to be worthy to welcome the Lord into our midst, from now on and always. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : Red
Matthew 4 : 18-22
At that time, as Jesus walked by the lake of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. He said to them, “Come, follow Me; and I will make you fish for people.”
At once they left their nets and followed Him. He went on from there and saw two other brothers, James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John, in a boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets. Jesus called them.
At once, they left the boat, and their father, and followed Him.
Liturgical Colour : Red
Psalm 18 : 2-3, 4-5
The heavens declare the glory of God; the firmament proclaims the work of His hands. Day talks it over with day; night hands on the knowledge to night.
No speech, no words, no voice is heard – but the call goes on, throughout the universe, the message is felt to the ends of the earth.
Liturgical Colour : Red
Romans 10 : 9-18
You are saved, if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord, and, in your heart, you believe that God raised Him from the dead. By believing from the heart, you obtain true righteousness; by confessing the faith with your lips, you are saved.
For Scripture says : No one who believes in Him will be ashamed. Here, there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; all have the same Lord, Who is very generous with whoever calls on Him. Truly, all who call upon the Name of the Lord will be saved.
But how can they call upon the Name of the Lord without having believed in Him? And how can they believe in Him, without having first heard about Him? And how will they hear about Him, if no one preaches about Him? And how will they preach about Him, if no one sends them?
As Scripture says : How beautiful are the feet of the messenger of Good News. Although, not everyone obeyed the Good News, as Isaiah said : Lord, who has believed in our preaching? So, faith comes from preaching, and preaching is rooted in the word of Christ.
I ask : Have the Jews not heard? But, of course, they have. Because the voice of those preaching resounded all over the earth, and their voice was heard, to the ends of the world.
Liturgical Colour : Red
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us celebrate the Feast of St. Andrew the Apostle, one of the Twelve Apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ and also the brother of St. Peter the Apostle, the Vicar of Christ. St. Andrew is also often known as St. Andrew the First-Called, due to his background as the likely disciple of St. John the Baptist before becoming a follower of Christ, and according to tradition, one of the two disciples to whom St. John the Baptist proclaimed, ‘Look, there is the Lamb of God!’ referring to the Lord at His baptism.
St. Andrew therefore was indeed the first-called of the Lord’s disciples, and he was the one who introduced the Lord to his brother, St. Peter, as well as the brothers St. James and St. John, the sons of Zebedee. Those three would be among the closest of the Lord’s disciples, and would often accompany the Lord on important events of His ministry like the Transfiguration and the moment of His Agony in the Gardens of Gethsemane.
St. Andrew himself was also mentioned at the feeding of the five thousand, when he was the one who brought the boy with loaves of bread and fish to Him, that He might give them to the people all waiting in hunger. At that time, St. Andrew did not yet understand what the Lord would do, but the Lord overcame his doubts that those meagre amount of food could feed the whole multitudes of people through the great miracle of the feeding of the five thousand men and thousands more of women and children.
In time, St. Andrew would continue to faithfully serve the Lord through His ministry, and was there throughout His Passion, suffering, death and Resurrection from the dead. From the beginning when he was first called by the Lord to be His follower, St. Andrew had dedicated himself just as his brother and the other Apostles and disciples of the Lord had done, ministering to the people and proclaiming the Lord’s coming. And even after the Lord had ascended into Heaven, he continued to preach the faith in a renewed ministry and calling.
St. Andrew brought the faith to many lands, including those areas now known as Ukraine and Russia, the Balkans and Greece among other places. He laboured hard like the other Apostles and disciples of the Lord, spreading the Good News to many people, to those who had not yet witnessed and heard about the Lord and His salvation. Many were converted by his works and efforts, and many more were inspired by his ministry.
St. Andrew established the Church in many places and built the foundation for the Christian communities in those places, and most importantly, in the place where a great city now stands, the city of Constantinople, St. Andrew was the first Bishop of the Christian community there. At that time, the place was just a small historic city of Byzantium, at the juncture and crossroads between Asia and Europe. It was there that St. Andrew would henceforth be well remembered as the founder of the See of Constantinople, once Byzantium was rebuilt as Constantinople, the new capital of the Roman Empire.
And just like most of the other Apostles and many other disciples of the Lord, St. Andrew faced persecution and sufferings, and during his ministry in the land of Greece, he was arrested, put to great suffering, and was eventually martyred by crucifixion, being crucified on an X-shaped cross, which would therefore be known as the Cross of St. Andrew, in memory of his faith and dedication to the Lord to the very end.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, in St. Andrew we have seen a great disciple and follower of the Lord. St. Andrew the Apostle is our inspiration and role model in how he followed the Lord and responded to His call. Are we able to follow his good examples, and respond to the Lord’s call to all of us as well? The Lord has called us all to follow Him and serve Him, and to devote and our attention to bring greater glory to His Name.
Yet, many of us have not realise and appreciate this calling, and many of us remain lukewarm in our faith and passive in how we lived our lives. To be a Christian means we must be ready to face challenges, trials and persecutions as the Apostles and the disciples of the Lord had faced, and as the many martyrs of the Church could attest before us all. There are still so much indeed that we can do as Christians, and as members of God’s Church and as His disciples.
Let us all respond well to the Lord’s calling in our respective lives and in whatever contributions we can make in our communities, families, among our circle of friends and more. We do not need to do great and marvellous things, and it is through our little dedications and commitments everyday, through our simple actions, through our words and ways of interacting with each other, that communicates our genuine faith and love for God, which will be the best preaching of the Good News, and we will become like St. Andrew, inspirational example of faith for all of our fellow brethren to follow.
Let us all pray for the good of the Church, and ask St. Andrew to intercede for all of us. In particular, we pray for the full unity of the Church, as the Church of Constantinople and the Eastern Orthodox Communion centred on the See of his successor in Constantinople, the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, that they together will continue their journey towards full reunion and reconciliation with the Universal Church, with St. Peter and his successors, the Vicar of Christ, all fellow brothers and sisters in the Lord. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : Red
Matthew 4 : 18-22
At that time, as Jesus walked by the lake of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. He said to them, “Come, follow Me; and I will make you fish for people.”
At once they left their nets and followed Him. He went on from there and saw two other brothers, James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John, in a boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets. Jesus called them.
At once, they left the boat, and their father, and followed Him.
Liturgical Colour : Red
Psalm 18 : 2-3, 4-5
The heavens declare the glory of God; the firmament proclaims the work of His hands. Day talks it over with day; night hands on the knowledge to night.
No speech, no words, no voice is heard – but the call goes on, throughout the universe, the message is felt to the ends of the earth.
Liturgical Colour : Red
Romans 10 : 9-18
You are saved, if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord, and, in your heart, you believe that God raised Him from the dead. By believing from the heart, you obtain true righteousness; by confessing the faith with your lips, you are saved.
For Scripture says : No one who believes in Him will be ashamed. Here, there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; all have the same Lord, Who is very generous with whoever calls on Him. Truly, all who call upon the Name of the Lord will be saved.
But how can they call upon the Name of the Lord without having believed in Him? And how can they believe in Him, without having first heard about Him? And how will they hear about Him, if no one preaches about Him? And how will they preach about Him, if no one sends them?
As Scripture says : How beautiful are the feet of the messenger of Good News. Although, not everyone obeyed the Good News, as Isaiah said : Lord, who has believed in our preaching? So, faith comes from preaching, and preaching is rooted in the word of Christ.
I ask : Have the Jews not heard? But, of course, they have. Because the voice of those preaching resounded all over the earth, and their voice was heard, to the ends of the world.
petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang 