St. Andrew's Day - 30th November  2008

Saint Andrew is the Patron Saint of Scotland

St. Andrew was the first disciple and missionary of Jesus. He was born into a family of fishermen near Bethsaida in Galilee and with his brother Peter fished in the nearby lake alongside their father Jona. However by the time Jesus came into their lives the brothers lived in Capernaum.

Until Andrew became aware of Jesus he was a follower of John the Baptist and only left when he heard John refer to Jesus as 'the lamb of god'. His missionary instincts showed early on when he brought his brother Simon to meet Jesus. Jesus renamed him Simon Peter and both brothers were baptized in the River Jordan. Andrew and Simon Peter were called to become full time disciples when Jesus said 'Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men'.

After this Andrew's life becomes unclear although he is mentioned at the feeding of the five thousand and at the celebration of Pentecost. Most authorities agree that he was crucified at Patras and this is where the Scottish connection stems from.

Legend says St. Rule dreamt that an angel told him to remove Andrew's bones and take them to the 'ends of the earth'. St. Rule obeyed his dream, removed what was left of the remains and made his escape. He was eventually shipwrecked off the coast of Scotland, which at that time was as far away as anyone knew, and so St. Rule came ashore with his precious cargo at a settlement on the  Scottish East Coast which became known as St. Andrews.

There are several versions of how St. Andrew became associated with Scotland, none of which has any more credence than the legend above. The remains of St. Andrew were placed in a chapel which was replaced  later by the Cathedral of St. Andrews in 1160 and St. Andrews became Scotland's religious capital and a centre for medieval pilgrimage.

What happened to the remains is not known for sure, it is assumed they were lost during the Scottish Reformation when the Protestants overcame Roman Catholism.

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