Georgia , Georgia The
church tradition of Georgia regards Andrew as the first preacher of Christianity in the territory of Georgia and as the founder of the Georgian church. This tradition derives from Byzantine sources, particularly
Niketas David Paphlagon (died ) who asserts that "Andrew preached to the
Iberians,
Sauromatians,
Taurians, and
Scythians and to every region and city, on the
Black Sea, both north and south." The version was adopted by the 10th–11th-century Georgian ecclesiastics and, refurbished with more details, was inserted in the
Georgian Chronicles. The story of Andrew's mission in the Georgian lands endowed the Georgian church with apostolic origin and served as a defence argument to
George the Hagiorite against the encroachments from the
Antiochian church authorities on
autocephaly of the Georgian church. Another Georgian monk,
Ephraim the Minor, produced a thesis, reconciling Andrew's story with an earlier evidence of the 4th-century conversion of Georgians by
Nino and explaining the necessity of the "second Christening" by Nino. The thesis was made canonical by the Georgian church council in 1103. The Georgian Orthodox Church marks two feast days in honour of Saint Andrew, on 12 May and 13 December. The former date, dedicated to Andrew's arrival in Georgia, is a
public holiday in Georgia.
Cyprus Cypriot tradition holds that a ship which was transporting Andrew went off course and ran aground. Upon coming ashore, Andrew struck the rocks with his staff at which point a spring of healing waters gushed forth. Using it, the sight of the ship's captain, who had been blind in one eye, was restored. Thereafter, the site became a place of pilgrimage and a fortified monastery, the
Apostolos Andreas Monastery,
Apostolos Andreas Monastery () is a
monastery dedicated to Saint Andrew situated just south of
Cape Apostolos Andreas, which is the north-easternmost point of the island of
Cyprus, in
Rizokarpaso in the
Karpass Peninsula. The monastery is an important site to the
Cypriot Orthodox Church. It was once known as "the Lourdes of Cyprus", served not by an organized community of monks but by a changing group of volunteer priests and laymen. Both
Greek Cypriot and
Turkish Cypriot communities consider the monastery a holy place. As such, it is visited by many people for votive prayers.
Malta ) St. Andrew () is the patron saint of
Luqa. The patron saint's traditional feast () is celebrated on the first Sunday of July, with the liturgical feast being celebrated on 30 November. A local niche dedicated to him is found in Luqa, which is two storeys high. The first reference regards the small chapel at Luqa dedicated to Andrew dates to 1497. This chapel contained three altars, one of them dedicated to Andrew. The painting showing
Mary with Saints Andrew and Paul was painted by the Maltese artist
Filippo Dingli. At one time, many fishermen lived in the village of Luqa, and this may be the main reason for choosing Andrew as patron saint. The statue of Andrew was sculpted in wood by Giuseppe Scolaro in 1779. This statue underwent several restoration works including that of 1913 performed by the Maltese artist Abraham Gatt. The
Martyrdom of Saint Andrew on the main altar of the church was painted by
Mattia Preti in 1687.
Romania Saint Andrew is the patron saint of Romania. The official stance of the
Romanian Orthodox Church is that Andrew preached the Gospel in the province of
Dobruja (
Scythia Minor), where he is said to have converted the local population to Christianity. This tradition was not widely acknowledged until the 20th century, although it finds support in the
Church History of Eusebius. According to
Hippolytus of Rome (died c. 250) in his
On Apostles,
Origen in the third book of his
Commentaries on the Genesis (254 AD),
Eusebius in his Church History (340 AD), and other sources including Usaard's Martyrdom (845–865), and
Jacobus de Voragine's
Golden Legend (), Andrew preached in Scythia, a possible reference to Scythia Minor, corresponding to the modern-day regions of
Northern Dobruja (part of Romania) and
Southern Dobruja (part of Bulgaria).
Hippolytus also records that Andrew preached among the Thracians. Although the prevalence of Latin vocabulary for Christian concepts in the Romanian language may point to the antiquity of
Daco-Roman Christianity, some modern Romanian scholars consider the idea of early Christianisation (predating the
Edict of Milan) to be unsustainable. They regard it as part of the ideology of
Dacianism, which asserts that the Eastern Orthodox Church has been a constant companion and defender of the Romanian people throughout their entire history, a notion they argue was exploited for propaganda purposes during the communist era. Historians such as
Ioan-Aurel Pop, however, consider Romanians to be the first among the peoples now inhabiting the territories bordering Romania to have adopted Christianity, with conversion before the third century, during the period of the province of Roman Dacia, dissolved c. AD 271/275, playing a significant role in the
Romanian ethnogenesis. Scholar
Mircea Eliade argued in favor of structural links between
Zamolxism and Christianity, suggesting a greater receptiveness to early conversion among the local population. If Andrew the Apostle preached in Dobruja (in proximity to Thrace, where he is also said to have preached) rather than in Crimea as held by the Russian Orthodox Church, Christianity in Romania may be considered of apostolic origin. Between the 4th and 6th centuries, the region of Scythia Minor played an influential role in the development of
Christian theology.
Russia and Ukraine '' One of the foundational narratives associated with the history of
Orthodoxy in Russia is found in the 12th-century
Primary Chronicle, which says that the
Apostle Andrew visited
Scythia and
Greek colonies along the northern coast of the
Black Sea before making his way to
Chersonesus in
Crimea. According to this legend, Andrew reached the future location of the capital of
Kievan Rus' and foretold the foundation of a great Christian city in Kiev (modern
Kyiv) with many churches. Then, "he came to the [land of the]
Slovenians where
Novgorod now [stands]" and observed the locals, before eventually arriving in
Rome. Despite the lack of historical evidence supporting this narrative, modern church historians in Russia have often incorporated this tale into their studies.
Scotland (or "Saint Andrew's Cross") is the national
flag of Scotland. ,
Hutton-le-Hole. Several legends claim that the relics of Andrew were brought by divine guidance from
Constantinople to the place where the modern
Scottish town of
St Andrews stands today (
Gaelic,
Cill Rìmhinn). The oldest surviving manuscripts are two: one is among the manuscripts collected by
Jean-Baptiste Colbert and willed to
Louis XIV, now in the
Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris; the other is in the
Harley Collection in the
British Library, London. They state that the relics of Andrew were brought by one
Regulus to the
Pictish king
Óengus mac Fergusa (729–761). The only historical Regulus (
Riagail or Rule) whose name is preserved in the
tower of St Rule was an Irish monk expelled from
Ireland with
Columba; his dates, however, are – 600. There are good reasons for supposing that the relics were originally in the collection of
Acca, bishop of Hexham, who took them into Pictish country when he was driven from Hexham (), and founded a see, not, according to tradition, in
Galloway, but on the site of St Andrews. According to legendary accounts given in 16th-century historiography,
Óengus II in AD 832 led an army of
Picts and
Scots into battle against the
Angles, led by
Æthelstan of East Anglia, near modern-day
Athelstaneford,
East Lothian. The legend states that he was heavily outnumbered and hence whilst engaged in prayer on the eve of battle, Óengus vowed that if granted victory he would appoint Andrew as the patron saint of Scotland. On the morning of battle white clouds forming an X shape in the sky were said to have appeared. Óengus and his combined force, emboldened by this apparent divine intervention, took to the field and despite being inferior in numbers were victorious. Having interpreted the cloud phenomenon as representing the
crux decussata upon which Andrew was believed to have been crucified, Óengus honoured his pre-battle pledge and duly appointed Andrew as the patron saint of Scotland. The white saltire set against a celestial blue background is said to have been adopted as the design of the
flag of Scotland on the basis of this legend. However, there is evidence that Andrew was venerated in Scotland before this. Andrew's connection with Scotland may have been reinforced following the
Synod of Whitby, when the
Celtic Church felt that Columba had been "outranked" by Peter and that Peter's brother would make a higher-ranking patron. The 1320
Declaration of Arbroath cites Scotland's conversion to Christianity by Andrew, "the first to be an Apostle". Numerous parish churches in the
Church of Scotland and congregations of other Christian churches in Scotland are named after Andrew. The former national church of the Scottish people in
Rome,
Sant'Andrea degli Scozzesi, was dedicated to Saint Andrew. A local
superstition uses the cross of Saint Andrew as a
hex sign on the fireplaces in northern England and Scotland to prevent
witches from flying down the
chimney and entering the house to do mischief. By placing the Saint Andrew's cross on one of the
fireplace posts or
lintels, witches are prevented from entering through this opening. In this case, it is similar to the use of a
witch ball, although the cross will actively prevent witches from entering, whereas the witch ball will passively delay or entice the witch, and perhaps entrap it. The National Shrine of Saint Andrew is located at
St Mary's Cathedral, Edinburgh.
Spain St. Andrew was the patron saint of the Dukes of Burgundy. A form of St. Andrew's cross called the
Cross de Bourgogne was used as the flag of the Duchy of Burgundy, and after the duchy was acquired by Spain, by the Spanish Crown, and later as a Spanish naval flag and finally as an army battle flag up until 1843. Today, it is still a part of various Spanish military insignia and forms part of the coat of arms of the king of Spain. In Spain, Andrew is the patron of several locations:
San Andrés (
Santa Cruz de Tenerife),
San Andrés y Sauces (
La Palma),
Navalmoral de la Mata (
Cáceres),
Éibar (
Gipuzkoa),
Baeza (
Jaén),
Pobladura de Pelayo García and Pobladura de Yuso (
León),
Berlangas de Roa (
Burgos), Ligüerzana (
Palencia),
Castillo de Bayuela (
Toledo),
Almoradí (
Alicante),
Estella (
Navarra),
Sant Andreu de Palomar (
Barcelona),
Pujalt (
Catalonia),
Adamuz (
Córdoba) and in Cameros (
La Rioja). == Legacy ==