Saint Andrew the Apostle originated from Bethsaida of Galilee and was the brother of the Apostle Peter. He was among the first to follow Jesus Christ, earning him the title Protokletos (the First-Called). From his early youth, Andrew devoted himself to the service of God and chose a life of celibacy. Initially a disciple of John the Baptist, he learned of the Messiah’s coming and, following the baptism of Jesus, immediately followed Him. The Gospels recount how Andrew introduced his brother Simon (Peter) to Christ and describe his role in the miracle of feeding the five thousand.

Andrew was part of Christ’s inner circle of four disciples (alongside Peter, James, and John), to whom Christ revealed the mysteries of the future on the Mount of Olives. There are mentions of a lost apocryphal Gospel of Andrew and the Acts of Andrew, attributed to the Gnostic Charinus (3rd century CE).

According to tradition, following Pentecost, Andrew was assigned to preach in Bithynia, Propontis, and Byzantium (later Constantinople). His missionary journeys took him to Macedonia and Scythia, where, as some sources claim, he spent several decades. The Tale of Bygone Years (Primary Chronicle) describes his travels along the Dnieper River, where he blessed the future site of Kyiv, prophesying that divine grace would descend upon the region.

Upon concluding his travels, Andrew proceeded to Thrace and Greece, ultimately arriving in the city of Patras. There, his preaching inspired the conversion of Maximilla, the wife of the Roman proconsul, which led to his arrest. Andrew was subsequently martyred by crucifixion on an X-shaped cross, later known as Saint Andrew’s Cross.

Iconography
In Christian art, Saint Andrew is typically depicted as the second or third figure in the apostolic row. He is portrayed with a long gray beard, wearing a yellow tunic paired with a blue or green himation (less frequently red and blue garments). His attributes include a scroll or book, and, from the late 17th century, an X-shaped cross. Occasionally, he is shown with fishing nets or a cord, symbolizing his binding to the cross rather than being nailed to it.

Mykhailo Skop