| Mon Dec 1st | am: 1, 2, 3 pm: 4, 7 | Amos 2:6-16 | 2 Peter 1:1-11 | Matt 21:1-11 |
FEAST OF SAINT ANDREW, Apostle and Missionary, 1st Century (Transferred)
Patron Saint of Fishermen and the countries of Greece, Russia Scotland
LITURGICAL MEDITATION OF THE DAY: Very little is actually known about St. Andrew. We do know that he was one of the twelve. In all the stories where disciples were named, Andrew was among them. Andrew was there for the teachings of Jesus, the miracles of bringing hurting people to a state of wholeness, and the lessons of love and compassion that pervaded every encounter. Andrew brings the Gentiles to Jesus, he brings Simon Peter to Jesus, and he brings the young boy to Jesus. On each occasion when he is mentioned as an individual, it is because he is instrumental in bringing others to meet Jesus. He is bringing other people into the loving presence of the incarnate God. Isn’t that what we are all asked to do?
St. Andrew serves as a worthy saint to consider as a model in our Advent journey.
In this Advent season, can our words and actions show forth the love and compassion of the incarnate Lord? Can we consider as part of the start of each day how we can bring the incarnate God to those we meet? With each person this day that we speak with, can we share the story of faith so that people feel comfortable exploring the great questions in life with us on the journey? These seem to be some of the great hallmarks of St. Andrew the Apostle.
BIBLICAL MEDITATION– In Amos’ day (8th century BC), the court of the northern kings of Israel employed prophets whose job was to tell the King what he wanted to know, but Amos was determined to speak only the truth of God’s Word, knowing that it could lead to immense conflict. So when one reads the word of Amos today, one should remember that the prophet speaking of their errors and sin (Amos 2:6-8) was not the normal course. He also recalls for the Hebrews what God has done for them by raising them as a special people despite the pending judgment that loomed. In many respects, we can see our stories here in this OT account. We do not wish to hear of how we have deviated from God’s grace to a way of sin. We especially don’t care for people to remind us of such things, but that does not mitigate our accountability. If we want to be embraced by the generous grace of God, we must also be embraced by the grace of his judgment by being accountable. Perhaps Amos offers us a good reminder that to accept and take responsibility for ourselves and our relationships with God and others is the only real way for spiritual growth.
PRAYER: We humbly implore your majesty, O Lord, that, just as the blessed Apostle Andrew was for your Church a preacher and pastor, so he may be for us a constant intercessor before you. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, forever and ever. AMEN
Activity/Spiritual Discipline – As part of the Advent journey, consider making it with an accountability partner, a person whom you wholeheartedly trust. You should feel comfortable praying for and with them, and they should feel the same about you. This should be a person you know won’t be gossiping about your personal struggles or joys. The person should be a healthy balance for you; in other words, you should feel like you can seek support from them as much as they do from you.
ANCIENT WORDS/PRESENT GRACE: “Necessity urges us to pray for ourselves. Fraternal Charity obliges us to pray for others. God finds the prayer motivated by charity to be more meritorious than the prayer motivated by necessity”. — St. John Chrysostom
SONGS OF THE HEART- Great Saint Andrew