good ranitsa beloruch. dear brothers and sisters, today the orthodox church honors the memory of the holy apostle andrew the first-called. he belonged to the number of the apostles, being one of the closest disciples of christ. according to the gospel of john, the first person to hear christ’s call to follow him was andrew. because of this, the name first-called was assigned to it. the apostle was from galilee.

his way. at that time, the lord jesus christ came to john the baptist on the jordan to be baptized. pointing to the lord, the prophet said to his disciples: “behold the lamb of god, who takes away the sins of the world.” hearing this, andrew and john followed jesus. on the same day, the apostle andrew went to his brother simon peter. told him: “we have found the messiah.”

and peter joined the number of christ’s disciples. however, the apostles did not immediately devote themselves entirely to apostolic ministry. from the gospel we know that the brothers andrew and simon peter, as well as the brothers john and jacob, had to return to their usual occupation, fishing, for some time. some months later, the lord jesus christ, passing by lake galilee, saw them fishing and said: “follow me, i will make you boats of men.” then they left their boats and nets, and from that day on became constant disciples of christ. after the bright resurrection of christ, the ascension of the lord and the descent of the holy spirit. on his way

, the first-called apostle endured many sorrows from the pagans, he was expelled from cities, humiliated, stoned, but he tirelessly preached to people about the savior. by prayers apostle, the lord performed miracles. through the labors of the holy apostle andrew , christian churches were established, in which he appointed bishops and priests. according to church tradition, the apostle also reached the slavic lands, passing the coast of the black sea, crimea, the black sea region, he climbed along the dnieper to the place where the city of kiev now stands. the last city where the first-called apostle came, and where...

the miracles performed, his fiery word enlightened almost all the citizens of the city of patras with the true faith. only a few of the pagans, in including the ruler of the city of aegeat, refused to accept the saving gospel and showed stubbornness. the apostle andrew more than once addressed them with words of good news, but even miracles did not enlighten them. egyptata. the holy apostle with love

and humility appealed to his soul, trying to reveal to him the christian mystery of eternal life. the meaning of human life. the miraculous power of the holy cross of the lord. aegeates did not heed the word of the apostle; moreover, he became angry and ordered the apostle to be crucified. with hope in the lord, saint andrew the first-called made the decision ruler, with a prayer to christ he himself went to the place of execution. to prolong the torment of the ascetic, egiat ordered. not to nail the hands and feet of satag, but to tie them to the cross. for 2 days the apostle taught from the cross to the townspeople gathered around, and then, giving god praise, he said: “lord jesus christ, accept

my spirit.” here we see, on the one hand, the apostle’s striving for the service of the lord; he preaches on the cross. in such a state unnatural for the human body, under the scorching sun, but grace strengthened the holy apostle. yes, here we can emphasize for yourself the important edification that in difficult circumstances of life it is aspiration towards the lord and divine grace that helps a person. for the prayer that christians now say as they end their day, into your hands, lord, i commend my spirit. when the apostle uttered the above words, a bright radiance

of divine light overshadowed the cross and the sufferer crucified on it. the earthly path of the holy apostle andrew the first-called is an example of complete dedication. in the service of god. modern man is often aimed at other values, he seeks his own well-being and comfort. sometimes he is ready to do some good deed, but at the same time he immediately wonders what he will get in return, or what benefit he will get from it. for such people, it seems that the feat of the apostle andrew the first-called is completely incomprehensible, just as incomprehensible. the work of other ascetics, piety and martyrs. indeed, a heart that has not known the joy of communion with god cannot understand the life of the holy apostle andrew. a feat is alien to a person who does not want to see anything other than this earthly life.

for christ's sake. but a christian knows that earthly life is only a stage of our existence, short, difficult. but extremely important. using the example of the apostles, we see that the lord calls the unwise, not the mighty of this world, but his call is addressed to those whom we would call today simpletons. but these people had a deep and open heart, a heart ready and able to accommodate faith in god, willing to listen to him and follow him. and, although we don’t live with you. during the earthly life of christ the savior, and were not called by him to preach the gospel to the whole world, as once apostle, but you and i are christians, calling ourselves disciples of christ, we must understand perfectly well to remember that

our way of life is the best testimony of the risen christ the savior. thoughts, actions, deeds, this is how each of us can testify to our faith in front of the people around us, in front of those who, perhaps, have not even met god yet, do not know about him. dear brothers and sisters, may the memory of the apostle andrew the first-called encourage us all to remember to rise above our usual everyday affairs, fix your gaze. to the heavenly, let each of us, the moment when the lord touches our heart and calls us to serve him, even if in the smallest deed we were able to respond like the apostle, put aside

everything external and temporary that burdens us and follow christ, the saving, the merciful and loving everyone. news live on belarus 1 and belarus 24 in the studio.