VATICAN - Pope Benedict continues his catechesis on the Apostles: “Saint Andrew the Apostle teaches us to follow Jesus promptly, to speak enthusiastically about him to those we meet and above all to establish with Him a relationship of authentic familiarity”

Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - Pope Benedict XVI dedicated his weekly Audience teaching on Wednesday 14 June to the Apostle Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter. After reflecting on Saint Peter the Pope said he wished to “take a closer look at the other eleven Apostles”. “The first striking characteristic of Andrew is his name: it is not Jewish as one would expect, but Greek, no small sign of the cultural openness of his family… whatever the case he was certainly held in high esteem by the first Christian communities”.
From the Gospels there emerges clearly “the blood bond between Peter and Andrew, and also their common calling”. First of all Andrew was a disciple of John the Baptist which shows he was “truly a man of faith and hope”, and afterwards he became a follower of Christ “enjoying precious moments of intimate sharing” with Him. “Andrew was the first of the Apostles to be called to follow Jesus - the Pope recalled -. This is why the Byzantine Church honours him as Protóklitos, meaning "first to be called". And certainly because Peter and Andrew were brothers, the Church of Rome and the Church of Constantinople feel they are Sister Churches in a special way”.
The name of Andrew is mentioned in the Gospel on three other occasions: the miracle of the loaves and the fish in Galilee, when Andrew tells Jesus about the presence of a boy who has with him five loaves and two fish; in Jerusalem when a disciple remarks to Jesus about the marvellous sight of the walls of the Temple, and Jesus replies that one day nothing would remain of the walls, then Andrew with Peter, James and John asked him when this would happen; thirdly before his Passion, in Jerusalem, Andrew and Philip speak to Jesus on behalf of a small group of Greeks. “The Lord’s reply to their question appears - as often in the John’s Gospel - enigmatic, but precisely for this rich in significance. Jesus tell the two disciples and through them the Greek world: "The time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly I say to you: unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.
"What do these words mean in this context? Jesus means: Yes, there will be a meeting between myself and the Greeks, but not as an ordinary brief conversation between myself and a few people moved by curiosity. With my death, comparable with a grain of wheat falling to the ground, will come the hour of my glorification … In other words, Jesus prophesises the Church of the Greeks, the Church of the pagans, the Church of the world as a fruit of his Death and Resurrection.”
The Holy Father recalled that certain early traditions consider Andrew the “apostle of the Greeks in the years following Pentecost; they tells us that for the rest of his life he was the announcer and interpreter of Jesus for the Greek world”. A later tradition tells of the death of Andrew at Patrasse, where he was crucified. “At that supreme moment, however, like his brother Peter, he asked to be put on a cross different from that of Jesus”. The Pope said the death of Andrew is an important lesson: “our crosses acquire value if considered and accepted as part of the cross of Christ, if reached by the reflection of its light. Only by that Cross our sufferings are ennobled and acquire their true meaning. The Apostle Andrew, therefore, teaches us to follow Jesus promptly, to speak enthusiastically about him to those we meet, and above all to establish with Him a relationship of authentic familiarity, well aware that only in Him can we find full meaning for our life and our death .” (S.L.) (Agenzia Fides 14/6/2006, righe 44, parole 666)