Page:The Granite Monthly Volume 5.djvu/259

 SAINT ANDREW. 231

Baptist, the day following the baptism of Jesus, when our Lord was saluted by John, who exclaimed, " Behold the Lamb of God," and Andrew followed Him. He was also present with the mother of Jesus and with the other disciples, at the marriage in Cana of Galilee, and witnessed the miracle diere wrought by the Saviour. After they were called by Jesus while fishing in the lake, and were made " fishers of men," Andrew and his brother Peter were regular in their attendance upon Him, and in the prosecution of their new mission. Andrew received the evidence of Christ's resurrection from Mary Magdelene and the other women who had visited the tomb, and he saw Him antl heard His voice when He said : " Peace be unto you." He was also at Olivet on the ascension morning, and with others received the Saviour's blessing. Andrew and Peter after becoming disciples left " Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter," and lived in Capernaum. It was at their house that Jesus lodged when He preached in that city, and it was also at their house and at the request of both, that He cured Peter's wife's mother of a fever.

It appears that from Christ's disciples who had listened to His matchless teachings and witnessed the miracles proving His Messiahship, and were thereby qualified to give reliable testiiuony concerning Him, that He chose His Apostles. In enumerating them, two of the evangelists mention first the names of the two brothers. Connected with the Apostle's creed, which is so uni- versally adopted by the Greek, Roman and Protestant churches, and so gen- erally believed as a summary of Christian faith, there is a legend, that the creed was composed by the Apostles at Jerusalem before their separation after the day of Pentecost, each one contributing a sentence for the purpose of securing unity of teaching in the great outline of the faith they professed. The creed consists of twelve articles, and to Peter are ascribed the words : " I believe in God, the Father Almighty." To Andrew, " and in Jesus Christ, his only son. our Lord," and to John, " Suffered under Pontius Pilate." The words attributed to Andrew are by some credited to John, while the article ascribed to John is named as originatmg with Andrew, while another writer concedes to Andrew the sentence, " who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary."

After our Lord's ascension, when the Apostles were miraculously endowed and qualified for their sacred mission, the vast northern region of Scythia and Sogdiana and the neighboring countries was assigned to Andrew, who trav- ersed those inhospitable regions upon the dispersion of the Apostles, encoun- tering hazards most perilous with an unflinching courage and a pious determi- nation, which could only have been inspired by the blessed hope he cherished. Concerning St. Andrew's ministry, Origen writes that he preached at Scythia, (Russia). St. Jerome, also Eusebius, says he preached at Achaia (Greece), Nicophorus, in Asia Minor and Thrace (Turkey in Europe) ; St. Paulinus names Argos, where the Apostle preached, silencing their philosophers. Other ancient writers name other places as having been visited by him, as Sogdiana, Colchis and Epirus. Tradition particularly assigns as the scenes of his ministry, Russia, Greece, Asia Minor and Turkey in Europe, which may be regarded as the field of his Apostolic labor. Other localities are named where he zealously propagated the doctrines of Christianity and confirmed his teachings by miracles. At Synope on the Euxine (Black) sea, he was mal- treated and suffered great cruelties. The inhabitants became exasperated against him, and conspired to burn the house in which he lodged, which design was frustrated. They, however, treated him with savage cruelty, throwing him to the ground, stamping upon him, pulling and dragging him from place to place. He was beaten with clubs, pelted with stones, and there were some so demonical and brutish as to be guilty of biting off his flesh with their teeth.

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