Rite of Christian Initiation

Our Calling

Veni et Vide

Ecclesiastical Latin: [ˈveni et vide’]from the latin meaning [come and see]

We remember St. Andrew by the title “the First-Called” because he has the unique privilege of being the first person Jesus Christ called to follow Him as a disciple and an apostle. Think about that for a moment: He is the first link in the chain, the very first living stone of the foundation upon which the Church stands to this very day. Like his brother Simon, who came to be known as Saint Peter, St. Andrew was a fisherman: a simple, hardworking man who left behind the life that he had known in order to follow the Lord in the ministry of the Kingdom for which he ultimately gave his life as a martyr.

Andrew had been a follower of St. John the Baptist, who had clearly identified Christ by saying “Behold, the Lamb of God.” Who knows what Andrew understood about Him at that moment, but the Forerunner’s words indicate that this Savior is the Passover Lamb who will bring eternal life to a dark and dying world through His crucifixion and glorious resurrection. In response to the question of where He was staying, the Lord replied “Come and see.”

Sight is a prominent theme in St. John’s gospel, which later gives us the account of the healing of the eyes of the man who had been blind from birth. The ultimate point is not physical sight, of course, but spiritual vision. To know Jesus Christ is not simply to accept abstract truths about Him, but to have the spiritual clarity to behold His glory and to participate personally in His life. He called His first disciples truly to know Him from the depths of their souls, even as He invites and enables us to do today.