By Kulandai Albert csc –
Readings: Rom 10: 9-18; Mt 4:18-22
Today, we celebrate the feast of St. Andrew, the Apostle, who was one of the first disciples of Jesus. The meaning of the word ‘Andrew’ is strong and manly.
True to his name, St. Andrew was strong in following Jesus till the end of his life. As per the gospel, when Andrew was called by Jesus along with his brother Peter, they both left their nets at once and followed him. It was not easy to leave everything behind, but the sheer look and call of Jesus was powerful enough for Andrew to transform himself into a follower of the Lord. This first-hand experience made Andrew follow Jesus till the end of his life.
The first reading talks about the message of universal salvation. All of us are called to receive salvation, but our faith and proclamation makes the difference.
As a Christian, I am called to believe in Jesus Christ, who rose from the dead. But I need to hear about Jesus and know about him for me to believe and profess my faith in him. It is also important to proclaim the word of Christ to others. As Roman 10:17 says, faith comes from hearing the message and the message is heard through the word about Christ.
In our daily life, it is important to read about Jesus from the Bible and listen to the word of God. Through listening to and reading the word of God, we gain faith and then we can profess it in our daily lives. We get many chances in our everyday life to express our faith as a Christian.
However, many times we fail to share and express our faith and love to others. On this feast day of St. Andrew, let us have courage and be strong in expressing faith and love as Christians and become sincere followers of Jesus.