The Holy Apostles are the first people of the Church created by Jesus Christ. They are his pillars and are closest to the Lord as His disciples. Thanks to this, prayers to the Holy Apostles are the most precious and inspire the greatest hope in those praying.
Memorial Days:
- July 13 - Council of the glorious and omnipresent 12 apostles;
- December 13th;
- December 28—Cathedral of the Crimean Saints.
- June 3 – Cathedral of Saints of Karelia;
Andrew was the first to follow Jesus when he called him. Therefore, the prayer to St. Andrew the First-Called is one of the main prayers that must be addressed to the Saints.
Kontakion, voice 2*
Let us praise the courage of the namesake of the God-speaker/ and the Church of the supreme successor,/ Peter’s relative,/ just as in ancient times, and now we cry // come, you have found what you desire.
Translation: Let us praise the same name for courage (from other Greek Ἀνδρέας - courageous) of the Preacher of God and the Savior who was called first of the disciples, the relative of Peter; for he, as he once did, now cried out to us: “Come, we have found the Desired One!” (John 1:40–41).
How do prayers to the Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called help?
The Holy Apostle Andrew helps everyone who prays for the faith of Christ, for the freedom and prosperity of the Fatherland, for success in navigation.
But most often people turn to Apostle Andrew the First-Called in prayer for deliverance from illnesses. After all, the Lord endowed each of his disciples with this gift. The apostle himself healed people by laying on of hands. He refused to help anyone. There was only one condition - the person had to sincerely believe that he would be healed thanks to the prayer that he would bring to God through the Apostle Andrew. And today this condition is also valid, as it was almost 2000 years ago - only with sincere faith and complete hope for help should one bring a prayer to St. Andrew the First-Called for healing.
The prayer speaks of obtaining the salvation of the soul, and from here comes the healing of bodily ailments. After all, it is known that all diseases have a sinful cause. Once you get rid of sin, or the cause that gives rise to it, illnesses recede.
Memorial Day – December 13th. It is on this day that special prayers are read in the church, which you can join in the church and turn to the Great Martyr with your aspirations. But the prayer to St. Andrew the First-Called for health can be read at any time, and not just on this day.
Prayer
To the First-Called Apostle of God and our Savior Jesus Christ, Supreme Follower of the Church, Most Valuable Andrew, we glorify and magnify your apostolic labors, we sweetly remember your blessed coming to us, We honor your honorable suffering, which you endured for Christ, we kiss your sacred relics, we honor your holy memory and we believe that as the Lord lives, your soul lives as well, and you remain with Him forever in Heaven, where you loved us with the same love that you loved us, when you saw through the Holy Spirit. If you have already turned to Christ, and not just love, but pray to God for us, all our needs are in vain in His Light. Thus we believe and thus we confess this faith in the temple, which was most gloriously created in your name, Saint Andrew, where your holy relics rest; Believers, we ask and pray to the Lord and God and our Savior Jesus Christ, that through your prayers, who always listens and accepts, He will give us everything we need for the salvation of us sinners; Yes, just as you are abiy according to the voice of the Lord, having left your dreams, you have unswervingly followed Him, this and everyone from us, and not seeking your own, but also for the building up of your neighbor and for the heavenly calling, yes thinks. Having you as a representative and prayer book for us, we trust that your prayer can accomplish much before our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, to whom is due all glory, honor and worship with the Father and the Holy One Spirit forever and ever. Amen.
Life of St. Andrew the First-Called
This young man was a fisherman who followed the teachings of John the Baptist. When he pointed to the walking Jesus Christ and said: “Behold the Lamb of God,” then, together with his brother Peter, without hesitation, he left his craft and followed Christ into the unknown and completely relied on him.
Hence the nickname of the Apostle Andrew - the First-Called, because he was called the first of the apostles and disciples of Jesus Christ. He began his apostolic ministry by going north to preach Christianity among the pagans. He served exactly where Russia is located today, so this particular Apostle on our land is the most beloved and revered. He predicted that it was on the territory of Russia that Orthodoxy would rise and reach unprecedented prosperity. It was Rus' that he predicted would become the stronghold of the Church of Christ. He reached the territory where Kyiv was then founded. He erected a Christian cross on the mountains with his disciples and told his followers that he saw many churches rising in this place. But this happened 450 years before the day when Kyiv, the mother of Russian cities, was founded.
Of course, in the territory where paganism was the faith of all, without exception, except the converts - in Rus' - the preacher was not greeted kindly. He was persecuted, pursued and tried to kill him more than once. But, thanks to the intercession of God, he avoided death. Andrei left the Black Sea region and eventually began to live in Greece, where he also actively preached. But even there the rulers of the country did not accept Christianity, although the people believed in the teachings of the Apostle. After all, he healed a lot of people by laying on of hands, including noble and influential ones.
Around the year 62, a disciple of Christ was sentenced to crucifixion. But he was not at all afraid of such a death and preached right on the scaffold about the meaning of the crucifixion of Christ. He was executed in terrible agony, but despite this, until the last moment of his life, he preached to the gathered people. He was crucified on a cross in the shape of the letter “X”, which became a symbol of the martyrdom of St. Andrew the First-Called. When his soul was torn away from his body, the cross shone with Divine light. So, even the death of Andrei gave people a lesson in Orthodoxy.
It was this symbol that in the 17th century the sailors of the young Russian fleet, newly created by Peter the Great, chose as a sign on their battle banner. After all, as the Gospel says, Andrew, by the will of the Lord, could walk on water, and then tame the elements of the sea.
Death of a martyr
However, Andrei was ready for such an event and accepted this news humbly. He himself went to the place of death. It seemed to the ruler that another punishment for the saint would be crucifixion, which he so desperately glorified. But the pagan did not know what power this symbol contained. It is worth noting that the cross was erected with the letter “X”.
Over the next two days, prayer sounded from the lips of the martyr. It was very difficult for Apostle Andrew the First-Called. In order for the saint’s suffering to continue longer, the ruler ordered that his hands should not be nailed to the boards, but only tied.
A crowd gathered under the cross and sincerely listened to the last words of the martyr. It was then that Aegeates was afraid of the revenge of the people and ordered the removal of the apostle. But Andrei asked the Lord to grant him the honor of dying as a martyr. No matter how hard the soldiers tried, they could not untie the man. When the elder praised God, his cross shone with a pleasant heavenly light and his soul departed to heaven.
The ruler's wife, a woman named Maximilla, removed the preacher and buried him.
Knowing the life story of the apostle, it is not difficult to understand why prayer to St. Andrew the First-Called can heal.
Gospels
Mentioned in the lists of apostles in the Gospel of Matthew, Mark, Luke, as well as in the Acts of the Apostles.
Andrew was the brother of the Apostle Peter; a fisherman, like Peter, was born in Bethsaida, a city on the northern shore of Lake Galilee.
Andrew became the first of the called disciples of Christ, and therefore this apostle is often called the First Called.
We advise you to study Congratulations on the Epiphany in prose
According to the Gospel of Matthew and Mark, the calling of Andrew and Peter took place near Lake Galilee, the Apostle John in the Gospel of John describes the calling of Andrew, which took place near the Jordan immediately after the baptism of Jesus. According to this narrative, the Apostle Andrew was initially a disciple of John the Baptist.
On the pages of the Gospel of John, Andrew appears twice more - he conducts a dialogue with Jesus about the loaves and fishes before the miracle of feeding five thousand people and, together with the Apostle Philip, brings the Greeks to Jesus.
The apocryphal text of the Acts of Andrew, created, according to the generally accepted version, in the 3rd century, as well as the lost Gospel of Andrew, rejected by Gelasius I (492-496) in the Decretum Gelasianum, are known.
A meeting that changed your life
The holy martyr was born in Galilee. Poor but pious people lived here, mainly engaged in fishing. This region was also inhabited by the Greeks, so the cultural traditions of the peoples gradually mixed.
As a child, the saint was an easy-going and devout child. Therefore, during his acquaintance with John the Baptist, Andrei went over to his side. Soon, as John predicted, Jesus came to the Jordan and the future saint immediately believed in Him.
Apostle Andrew the First-Called
Together with brother Peter, they became His faithful disciples and never separated. The Apostle Andrew was one of the first to follow his Teacher. And after His Resurrection, the Lord blessed him on the path of spreading the Word of God. Andrew was ordered to carry the Commandments in the Kyiv lands, which is why the prayer to Andrew the First-Called is especially strong in the Russian side.
About the other apostles:
- Life of the Apostle Zacchaeus
- Prayers to the Holy Chief Apostles Peter and Paul
The apostle's earthly path was not an easy one. The pagans tried to kill him and cripple him, but each time the saint turned out to be unharmed. Years later, the saint ended up in Paphros. It was here that his gift as a healer manifested itself: the blind saw their eyes, the immobilized stood on their feet and began to move independently, and the sick on their deathbed recovered.
Over time, most of the townspeople believed in Christ, except for the city ruler named Aegeates. Despite the miracles that he personally observed, he saw only an enemy in the apostle and ordered his execution. The saint was ready for such a turn of events and with humility accepted martyrdom. The cross was erected in the shape of an “X”, and the saint was tied to it with ropes. For two days, with the last of his strength, he read prayers, and the people gathered under the cross listened to him. The ruler was afraid of the people's anger and gave the order to remove the martyr from the cross, but the soldiers, no matter how hard they tried, could not untie the knots. But the fact was that the apostle begged the Almighty to grant him the honor of ending his earthly journey as a martyr. The elder praised the Heavenly King, immediately the cross shone with heavenly light and the holy soul of Andrew the First-Called departed to the abode of Christ. And the wife of the city ruler removed the great preacher from the crucifixion and buried him according to Christian custom.
What do they pray to the saint for?
The Apostle is prayed to on many occasions. First of all, it helps to gain true faith and spiritual strength. After all, Andrew was one of the first who followed Jesus, casting aside all doubts. Thanks to this, during his long and righteous life he helped a huge number of people.
The miracles that occurred through the prayers of the righteous man are recorded in the history of his deeds. The ancient narrative reveals a number of cases of amazing healings and salvation from death. The saint patronizes those who have work similar to his own craft - fishing. Therefore, sailors and fishermen can turn to him in prayer.
In folk tradition, there is also a widespread belief that the apostle helps to get married successfully.
If a young girl cannot find a worthy groom, then her mother should turn to the first-called apostle, who during his lifetime was a model of chastity and purity. Then the daughter will definitely find family happiness.
Patron of sailors and fishermen
An ancient legend says that the apostle resurrected drowned people. People sailed to Patras, where he preached, in order to hear blessed speeches and heed the Word of God. But a strong storm broke out at sea and all the pilgrims drowned. Their bodies were carried by sea waves to the shore, where, by the Will of God, the saint was at that moment.
Andrew the First-Called
Having prayed over the mortal bodies, he brought them back to life. Thanks to this act, Saint Andrew is revered as the patron saint of fishermen and sailors.
The flag of the Russian flotilla is decorated with the St. Andrew's Cross. It is found on the mast of every Russian ship and before setting sail it is sprinkled with holy water and a prayer service is served.
About the saints equal to the apostles in Orthodoxy:
Relics of Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess OlgaLife of Equal-to-the-Apostles Cosmas of AetoliaRelics of Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir
And the holy apostle from heaven protects people from misfortunes and troubles.
The icon with his face must be kept in the captain’s cabin, so that in case of danger, one can raise prayers for help and, by the Will of God, calm the sea elements.
Important! Fishermen going out to sea must recite a prayer to the holy elder so that the waves will be merciful to them and the catch will be generous. https://www.youtube.com/embed/-8VdCAD8xzw
