John 1:35-42
Andrew is an interesting apostle. He was one of the first to follow Jesus. And yet he wasn’t in the inner circle of apostles, and we hear very little about him in the scriptures. But one thing about Andrew is that he is always bringing people to Jesus.. Here he brings his brother Simon to Jesus. Another time Andrew is mentioned, he brings a boy with five loaves and two fish to Jesus. A third time is when he introduces some gentiles to Jesus. And that’s about it. He didn’t write a gospel, he didn’t leave behind a record; we suspect he preached and was ultimately martyred, but those facts cannot be proven.
And yet I think Andrew is a model for the rest of us. We can’t all be Saint Paul or Saint Peter, great missionaries. We can’t all be spectacular saints or brilliant theologians or holy popes and bishops and members of religious orders. But Andrew shows us the common denominator of being a disciple.
Andrew is apparently a man who is dissatisfied with life, not in a radical way, but he senses there is more to life than being a fisherman, growing old in a small town. So he became a disciple of John the Baptist, who must have been an imposing figure dressed in animal skins and making people uncomfortable with his sermons. And it is John himself who points to Jesus and calls him “lamb of God”. What did that term mean to Andrew? Did it mean that Jesus was to be sacrificed for our sins? After all, lambs were being sacrificed in the temple all the time. Or did it mean that Jesus was in a special relationship with God, a relationship like that of a lamb to his shepherd. Whatever, Andrew needed to know more.
So much of the time we are content with mild dissatisfaction, the feeling that something is missing, but we don't know what. And it’s too much trouble to leave our rut. But God is always giving us clues, calling us; we just have to be like Andrew and pay attention.
So Andrew gets up and follows Jesus, who says, “What are you looking for?” Jesus recognizes in Andrew as well as in you and I, that we aren’t fulfilled, we aren’t satisfied, we are searching. Andrew replies, “Rabbi, where are you staying?” People have puzzled over that statement, which doesn’t seem to follow. But in those days, it meant “I’m willing to be your disciple” which in turn meant that I will become a member of your followers if you will let me. That’s why Andrew addresses him as Rabbi. John has more or less said that there is something special about Jesus, and Andrew wants to know more.
Jesus accepts Andrew with the words, “Come and see.” It’s an invitation to everyone. We aren’t going to learn what is missing in our lives by reading a book or listening to a lecture. We will learn what we need by entering into a relationship, and that requires being in the presence of Jesus, forming a friendship with him, learning to speak to him and listen to him. There is no substitute.
We next read that Andrew and the other disciple stayed with Jesus that day. I don’t know how long that was, but surprisingly, you and I have that opportunity frequently. Jesus is present in the blessed sacrament, and we have the opportunity to spend time with him, just as Andrew did. I don’t now what happened that day, but whatever transpired, whatever words were exchanged or questions asked and answered, Andrew recognized that he had found the answer to his dissatisfaction with life. He had found the promised one, the Messiah.
A lot of Christians, I think, stop there. We know that Jesus is the answer to our own seeking, and we find peace when we are in his presence. But Andrew goes to the next step in discipleship, which is to bring his brother into the Jesus’ circle. And that’s where we Catholics could do a better job. We need to bring others into that special relationship we have with Jesus. It’s not complicated. It starts with friendship, or a relationship of sorts. Peter is Andrew’s brother. Then we do just what Jesus has shown us -- we tell our friend, or our brother, or our uncle, “come and see”. “I’ve found something I want you to have also” and the implication is that I want this because I want the best for you. And certainly we’ll be rejected. There was a rich young man who had exactly that invitation, but chose not to follow it. There was Judas, who in the end decided that his relationship with Jesus was not as important as making a few bucks. But once in a while your efforts will pay off, and someone will be brought into a relationship with Jesus that wouldn’t happen otherwise. And maybe you will be responsible for the calling of a great saint.
It’s the beginning of a new year. It’s a good time to ask, how is our relationship with Jesus -- could it be better? And who are we going to invite into this relationship this year? We can’t all be Saint Paul or Saint John Paul II or Saint Theresa of Calcutta, but we can all be Saint Andrew.
