Heiliger Andreas

Apostle Andrew

According to the New Testament, Andrew the Apostle, also known as Saint Andrew, was a disciple of Jesus. He is the brother of Simon Peter and was part of the inner circle of Jesus Christ.

In the Orthodox tradition, he is known as the First-Called. The Patriarch of Constantinople is the apostolic successor to Saint Andrew.

Andrew was born in the early first century in the village of Bethsaida on the Sea of Galilee, according to the New Testament. He was a fisherman. His name means “strong,” and he was well-known for his social skills.

Saint Andrew
Heiliger Andreas

According to Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee when he noticed Andrew and Simon Peter fishing. Then he asked them to be disciples and “fishers of men.” Andrew is not named in the Gospel of Luke at first. It describes Jesus using a boat, thought to be solely Simon’s, to preach to the multitudes and catch a large amount of fish on a previously dry night. Later, in Luke 5:7, it is mentioned that Simon was not the only Fischer auf dem Boot, but it is not mentioned until Lukas 6:14 that Andrew is Simon Peter’s brother.

Birth/Early Life

There are a few facts that you should know for instance that Andrew was born between the years of 5 and 10 in Bethsaida, Palestine’s main fishing port. His parents’ names were Jona and Joanna, and he had a brother called Simon. Jona was a fisherman, along with his business partner and friend Zebedee and his sons James and John. Andrew was naturally inquisitive. He would have started attending synagogue school at the age of five, where he would have studied scripture, astronomy, and arithmetic.

Saint Andrew

Life With Jesus

The Apostle Andrew, whose name means “manly,” was Jesus Christ’s first apostle. He had previously been a disciple of John the Baptist, but when John declared Jesus to be “the lamb of God,” Andrew followed him and spent a day with him. Andrew went straight to his brother Simon and told him, “We have found the Messiah.” (John 1:41) He accompanied Simon to meet Jesus. According to Matthew, Simon and Andrew dropped their fishing nets and followed Jesus as he passed by.

Three episodes involving the Apostle Andrew are recorded in the Gospels. He and three other disciples questioned Jesus about his prediction that the Temple would be demolished (Mark 13:3; Mark 13:4). Andrew brought a boy to Jesus with two fish and five barley loaves, which he multiplied to feed 5,000 people (John 6:8; John 6:9; John 6:10; John 6:11; John 6:12; John 6:13).

DieApostle Philip and Andrew brought some Greeks who wanted to meet Jesus to him (John 12:20; John 12:21; John 12:22). Although it is not mentioned in the Bible, church tradition holds that Andrew was crucified as a martyr on an X-shaped cross.

His Travels

Andrew, like the other apostles, went forth to spread the gospel after Christ’s death, resurrection, and ascension, but accounts differ as to the extent of his travels. Andrew, according to Origen and Eusebius, first traveled around the Black Sea as far as Ukraine and Russia, whereas other accounts focus on Andrew’s later evangelization in Byzantium and Asia Minor. He is credited with establishing the Sea of Byzantium (later Constantinople) in the year 38, which is why he is the patron saint of the Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, even though Andrew was not the first bishop there.

Schlüssel zum Mitnehmen

Andrew war einer vondie zwölf Apostel, and he is known as “Protocletus” (the First-Called) because he was the first Apostle to be summoned into Jesus’ service. Andrew and his brother Peter were fishermen on the Sea of Galilee. Both men became Apostles, and while his brother came to symbolize the Church of the West, Andrew came to symbolize the Church of the East.

Heute ruft die Stimme des Hl. Andreas weiterhin alle Christen auf, insbesondere die griechisch-orthodoxen Christen auf der ganzen Welt. Sein ungestillter Geist lockt über die Jahrhunderte hinweg und verkündet:

„Der Retter der Welt ist gekommen! Er ist der Christus, der Sohn Gottes!“

This is the call of St. Andrew to all men for “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow.” (Hebrews 13:8)

Death

TraditionsorteAndrew’s martyrdom on November 30 of the year 60. Andrew was martyred on November 30, 60 (during Nero’s persecution) in the Greek city of Patrae, according to tradition. A medieval tradition also holds that he did not consider himself worthy of being crucified in the same manner as Christ, and so he was placed on an X-shaped cross, now known as Saint Andrew’s Cross (especially in heraldry and flags). The Roman governor had him bound rather than nailed to the cross to prolong the crucifixion and thus Andrew’s agony.

St. Andreas Geschenke

Wer war der heilige Andreas?

He was the brother of St. Peter, who was also known as Simon bar-Jonah. He and Andrew shared the same father, so the latter would have been known as Andrew Bar-Jonah.

Saint Andrew is regularly mentioned after Simon Peter, which suggests that he was Peter’s younger brother. Like his brother Peter and their partners James and John, Andrew was initially a fisherman on the Sea of Galilee.

Das erste auffällige Merkmal von Andrew ist sein Name: Er ist nicht hebräisch, wie man hätte erwarten können, sondern griechisch, was auf eine gewisse kulturelle Offenheit in seiner Familie hinweist, die nicht zu übersehen ist. Wir befinden uns in Galiläa, wo die griechische Sprache und Kultur sehr präsent sind.

Fischer

Andreas war der Bruder von Simon Petrus und ein Mitglied der Fischergemeinschaft, aus der Jesus mehrere seiner Jünger zog. Zusammen mit ihren Partnern James und John übten sie mit einigem Erfolg ihren Fischfang auf dem See Genezareth aus.

Excavations at Capernaum, the main fishing village on the Lake of Galilee in Bible days, reveal that some of the houses were large—implying that some of the fishermen were able to make a good living from their fishing business. A fisherman’s task in Bible days was a strenuous one and demanded total commitment. Successful fishermen were known to be reliable and diligent men—good qualities for disciples, too.

Eine neue Berufung

Als Jesus am Ufer von Galiläa entlang geht, erblickt er Andreas und Petrus, die in ihrem Boot arbeiten und ihr Fischernetz auslassen. Der Meister spricht zu ihnen und informiert sie, dass er möchte, dass sie ihre Berufung ändern und seine Jünger werden.

No doubt they knew at once what was involved in this challenge—a different lifestyle, constant traveling, hours of instruction—but they seemed not to hesitate.

Der Ruf Christi erreichte sie in Worten, mit denen sie sich leicht identifizieren konnten: „Folgt mir nach … und ich werde euch zu Menschenfischern machen.“ Das Wort „machen“ im Griechischen ist stark und zeigt an, dass Christus ihnen seine geistliche Stärke und Kraft verleihen würde.

Ein Führungswechsel

Before his call to join Christ’s disciples, Andrew was a devoted disciple of John the Baptist. One day, when he was in John and another disciple’s company, a carpenter from Galilee passed by, and John pointed Him out as “the Lamb of God.” Andrew and the other disciple immediately left John and went after Jesus to get to know Him better.

Uns wird nicht gesagt, wer der andere Jünger war, aber wir wissen, dass etwas in Andrews Herzen begann, das ihn auf die direkte Berufung Christi vorbereitete. Es hatte viele große geistliche Führer in Israel gegeben, aber keiner war so groß wie Jesus: Andere konnten ihn verkünden, aber keiner konnte ihm gleichkommen.

Ein williger Helfer

Während Jesus die Menschen an den Ufern Galiläas predigt und lehrt, werden große Menschenmengen von ihm angezogen. Bei dieser Gelegenheit, da die Menschen in einiger Entfernung von der nächsten Stadt sind und Hunger haben, stellt sich das Problem, wie sie ernährt werden sollen. Philip weist darauf hin, dass die Kosten zu hoch wären, selbst wenn es möglich wäre, Lebensmittel zu kaufen.

Andrew, overhearing these words, brings a young boy to Jesus who has with him five small loaves and two fishes. Jesus blesses the small supply, and, miraculously, enough food is distributed to meet everyone’s needs. Later, when some Greeks ask the Apostle Philip if they can be introduced to Jesus, he appeals to Andrew for help. No doubt by this time, Andrew had revealed what seems to be his uppermost characteristic: that of being a willing helper.

Stellt die Familie vor

Nachdem er Johannes den Täufer verlassen hat, um Jesus zu suchen und ihn näher kennenzulernen, ist Andreas von seiner ersten Begegnung mit Christus so begeistert, dass er sich beeilt, seinen Bruder Simon Petrus zu finden, und ihn voller Freude Jesus vorstellt. Obwohl es sich um eine scheinbar einfache Handlung handelte, hatte diese Einführung einen großen Einfluss, nicht nur auf Simon Peter persönlich, sondern auch auf die kommenden Zeitalter.

Simon Peter became the one to whom Christ gave the keys of the kingdom, and through his thrilling, Spirit-anointed sermon on the Day of Pentecost, opened its gates to thousands of newly converted souls. Little did Andrew know what impact that simple introduction was to have.

Ein guter Lerner

Jesus verbrachte einen großen Teil seiner Zeit damit, seine Jünger zu lehren und sie auf ihren zukünftigen Dienst in seiner Kirche vorzubereiten. Als bei dieser Gelegenheit einer der Jünger zu Jesus bemerkte, wie gut gebaut und wie großartig die Tempelgebäude seien, wandte sich der Meister an sie und sagte ihre völlige Zerstörung voraus.

Diese Vorhersage beunruhigte die Jünger etwas, und vier von ihnen – Petrus, Jakobus, Johannes und Andreas – wandten sich privat an Christus und baten ihn, ihnen genau zu sagen, wann das Ereignis stattfinden würde und welche Zeichen ihm vorausgehen würden. Andreas lernte zweifellos viel von Jesus, nicht nur, indem er zuhörte, was er sagte, sondern indem er ihm gezielte Fragen stellte.

Der Ort des Gebets

After His resurrection, Jesus instructed His disciples to remain in Jerusalem and wait for the power of the Holy Spirit to descend upon them. Now that Judas is dead, the remaining eleven disciples—one of whom is Andrew—make their way and over one hundred other followers of Christ into the Oberes Zimmer.

Sie warten zehn Tage im Gebet, bis schließlich am Pfingsttag die verheißene Kraft gegeben wird. Wenn der Heilige Geist fällt, wird jeder im Raum vom Geist erfüllt und befähigt, Jesu Auftrag an sie auszuführen: „Geht hinaus in alle Welt und predigt der ganzen Schöpfung die gute Nachricht“ (Markus 16:15).

Zusammenfassung Merkmale des Apostels Andreas

Andreas war der erste aufgezeichnete Jünger Christi – und seine erste Tat als Jünger bestand darin, seinen Bruder Simon Petrus aufzusuchen und ihn zu Jesus zu bringen. Das macht Andreas nicht nur zum ersten Jünger, sondern auch zum ersten Evangelisten.

Einige Kommentatoren bezeichnen Andrew als „den überschatteten Heiligen“, da er scheinbar ständig von seinem überschwänglicheren und aufgeschlosseneren Bruder überschattet wird.

Trotzdem setzt Andreas seine Aufgabe fort, Christus zu dienen, und zeichnet sich dadurch aus, dass er „andere zu Jesus bringt“. Zuerst brachte er seinen Bruder, dann den Jungen mit den Broten und Fischen und später die Griechen.

Obwohl die Erwähnung von Andreas in den Evangelien im Vergleich zu seinem Bruder Simon Petrus selten ist, ist sein Leben es wert, studiert zu werden. Er gehörte vielleicht nicht zum engeren Kreis der Jünger Jesu (Petrus, Jakobus und Johannes), aber er war ein Heiliger* und ein Apostel, dessen Charakter bewundernswert ist.

Fakten

Apostle Andrew Facts share an analysis of how Andrew the Apostle was not a dominant person next to his outspoken brother.

He was a passionate preacher and shared the gospel boldly and was a significant contributor to the early church.

Andrew died a martyr’s death. He faced crucifixion with boldness and courage.

Er sagte,

Oh, cross most welcome and longed for! With a willing mind, joyfully and desirously, I come to you, being a scholar of Him which did hang on you, because I have always been your lover and yearn to embrace you.”

Andrew the Apostle Facts; Gospel Revelation

There are three notable incidents. The first occurs when Jesus performs the multiplication of loaves.

Pope Benedict notes:

The Gospel traditions mention Andrew’s name in particular on another three occasions that tell us something more about this man. The first is that of the multiplication of the loaves in Galilee.

On that occasion, it was Andrew who pointed out to Jesus the presence of a young boy who had with him five barley loaves and two fish: not much, he remarked, for the multitudes who had gathered in that place.

In this case, it is worth highlighting Andrew’s realism. He noticed the boy, that is, he had already asked the question: “But what good is that for so many?”, and recognized the insufficiency of his minimal resources. Jesus, however, knew how to make them sufficient for the multitude of people who had come to hear him.

Apostle Andrew’s Miracles

God made many miracles through St Andrew in Patra. The blind got their sight and the infirm were made whole. Through the Apostle’s prayers, Sosios, the illustrious citizen, recovered from a serious illness.

One of Andrew the apostle’s facts is that he healed Maximilla, the Patra governor’s wife. St Andrew’s miracles and his speech enlightened nearly all citizens of Patra with true faith.

Several pagans remained in the city of Patra; however, among them was Aegeatos, the city’s prefect.

The apostle repeatedly tried to turn to Aegeatos with the words of the Gospel. However, Aegeatos was not convinced even by his miracles.

With humility and love, St Andrew appealed to his soul, trying to disclose to him the mystery of eternal life through the Holy Cross of the Lord’s power.

Another of the Andrew the apostle facts is that Aegeatos ordered the crucifixion of St Andrew.

The pagan believed he was likely to undo the preaching of the apostle if he was to let him die on the cross.

The Disciple of John the Baptist

There are multiple Andrew the apostle facts and one of them is that he was a disciple of John the Baptist before he was a disciple of Jesus. We read of an encounter between Andrew, John, and Jesus in John 1:40;John 1:41;John 1:42 “Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus.

The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him,

“We have found the Messiah (that is, the Christ)”.

And he brought him to Jesus.” What I like about Andrew’s nature was that he was always bringing people to Christ. Perhaps he had been doing the same thing for John the Baptist.

It wouldn’t be surprising if he did give the fact that he was bringing others to Jesus. Maybe that’s because Andrew immediately recognized Jesus as the fulfillment of the long-prophesied Messiah (John 1:41).

Andrew and the Apostle Philip once even brought some Greeks to meet Jesus (John 12:22) so the thing that impresses me most about Andrew is that he forsook everything and everyone to follow Jesus and then was determined to bring others to Christ. How much am I like that or how far do I fall short of that willingness to forsake all and bring others to Christ?

Artus Wolffort - St. Andrew
Artus Wolffort – St. Andrew

St Andrew’s Relationship with Jesus

In the synoptic Gospels and Acts, the twelve apostles are always listed in three groups of four individuals. The first of these groups indicates those who were the closest to Jesus. It includes the two pairs of brothers: (1) Peter and Andrew, the sons of Jonah, and (2) James and John, the sons of Zebedee.

Going through Andrew the Apostle’s facts it is interesting to see that he was one of the four disciples closest to Jesus, but he seems to have been the least close of the four.

This is reflected in the fact that several times, Peter, James, and John seem to have privileged access to Jesus, while Andrew is not present.

For example, Peter, James, and John were present for the Transfiguration, but Andrew was not present. They were the closest three, while Andrew was a distant fourth. This is ironic.

Forsaking All

Both Andrew and apostle Peter left everything behind to follow Jesus to become “Menschenfischer.” This is astounding if you think about it because they left their lifelong job security, the only thing they had ever known, everything that was familiar to them, and they had to leave their family behind too, all walking away at Jesus’ invitation.

The words “Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed Him” reveal to us the true nature of this “all” that they left to follow Him. They forsook both their living and their father and family.

What their father must have felt about this is not stated but one wonders if Andrew and Peter’s father tried to talk them both out of it and when he couldn’t, must have been dumbfounded.

Conclusion Andrew the Apostle Facts

Andrew the apostle’s facts made us realize that Andrews’s life is an example to us, let it be that as he did, we need to be bringing people to Christ and to go into all the world, even if it is our next-door neighbor. He forsook everything to follow Christ, including his family, his job security, and even his nation in the latter part of his life.

Zusammenfassung

Andrew demonstrated his love for his brother as well as his apostolic zeal when he sought out Peter, convinced that Jesus was the Messiah. “Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard John and followed Jesus. He first went to his own brother Simon and told him, ‘We have found the Messiah,’ and then brought him to Jesus.” (John 1:40; John 1:41; John 1:42)

Some of Andrew’s relics were brought to Scotland in the fourth century, but parts of his skeleton are kept in the crypt of Amalfi Cathedral in Italy, where they are removed twice a year and produce a clear, water-like substance. The substance, known as “manna,” is said to have miraculous properties.

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