St Andrew's Day
The feast of Andrew the Apostle, the fisherman who brought his brother Peter to Jesus; Scotland's national day.
When: 30 November
Origin and history
Andrew was a fisherman and one of the Twelve Apostles. In the Gospel of John he is first a disciple of John the Baptist; he then follows Jesus and introduces his brother Simon Peter to him, which is why the Eastern Orthodox Church calls him the 'First-Called'. Tradition says he was martyred at Patras in Greece and that he was crucified on an X-shaped cross, now called a Saint Andrew's Cross or saltire. Because Advent begins on the Sunday nearest 30 November, his day sits at the very start of the church year.
Andrew is the patron saint of Scotland, and also of Greece's city of Patras, Romania, Russia, Ukraine, Cyprus and the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.
Customs
- In Scotland it is the official national day, and the Saltire, the white X-shaped cross on blue, is flown on government buildings.
- The Saint Andrew Christmas Novena, a traditional Advent prayer said many times each day, begins on his feast.
- It has been a national holiday in Romania since 2015.
How traditions differ
Andrew is honoured by Catholic, Orthodox and Anglican churches on the same date, 30 November.
In the library
More in Advent
Sources checked: Saint Andrew's Day (Wikipedia); Andrew the Apostle (Wikipedia).