Feast of Holy Apostle Andrew, the First Called - 30th of November

The Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called was the first of the Apostles to follow Christ, and he later brought his own brother, the holy Apostle Peter, to Christ (John 1:35-42).

After the Descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles, St Andrew went to the Eastern lands preaching the Word of God. He went through Asia Minor, Thrace, Macedonia, he reached the River

Saint Andrew by El Greco (D. Theotokopoulos) 1606, oil on canvas

Danube, went along the coast of the Black Sea (Pontus
Euxinus), through Crimea, the Black Sea region and along the River Dniepr he climbed to the place where the city of Kiev now stands.

Saint Andrew is considered to be the "Protector of Romania", and as testimony, the abundance of children baptized Andrei or Andreea each year :-) His Beatitude Teoctist, the Patriarch of Romania wears white habits, in honor of Saint Andrew, of whom the legend tells that arrived in Thrace (present day Bulgaria) and Dacia (present day Romania) wearing a white tunic.

Romanians believe that Saint Andrew was the first who preached Christianity in Scythia Minor, modern Dobrogea, to the native Dacians (ancestors of Romanians). There is an additional "detail": as Romanians celebrate their national holiday on December 1, the day following the feast of the Apostle Andrew, with greater reason that he is so revered and loved; among the elderly it is often said that he is the one who "made possible" the union of the three Romanian provinces in 1918. There are toponyms and numerous old traditions (such as carols) related to Saint Andrew, many of them probably having a pre-christian substratum. There also is a cave where it is believed that he preached. Moreover, in Romania, the feasts and traditions at the end of November and beginning of December correspond to old Dacian and Roman traditions. Thus, Saint Andrew has not entered the christian consciousness alone. The new holiday keeps to this day some of the old Dacian rites and magical practices, that usually take place on the night of the 29th to the 30th of November...