30 November 2020
Feast of Saint Andrew, Apostle
St. Andrew, whom we commemorate today, is the perfect saint for anyone who understands the beauty and complexities of relationships between siblings.
Siblings are the people that we will probably know and walk this life with for the longest. In childhood, they are our very first friends, our teammates, our supporters, but also at times, our enemies, competitors, and outright rivals. While hopefully the bonds of love prevail as we mature, in every relationship there are those aspects that need to be healed.
We often hear of St. Andrew as being St. Peter’s brother—seldom do we hear this the other way around. How might it have been for Andrew to hear his brother get a special name from Jesus? To know his brother was chosen over him to experience the Transfiguration at Mount Tabor? To see his brother be the Prince of the Apostles? Especially after it was Andrew himself who first encountered Jesus and called him Messiah! (John 1:40-42).
Did he ever feel resentment, jealousy, bitterness? We cannot know. Do we ever feel resentment, jealousy, or bitterness towards our siblings? That is up for us to honestly answer in our heart of hearts.
What we can know for sure is that St. Andrew had the joy of being an evangelist to his brother, Peter. As St. Paul writes today in his letter to the Romans quoting the prophet Isaiah, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the good news!” With our brothers and sisters, whether related by blood or not, may we always strive to bring the Good News of Christ through our words and actions. May this be our joy.
St. Andrew, pray for us!