Saint Andrew is known as the ‘First Called’ as he was the first of the twelve Apostles to be called by Jesus.
Originally a fisherman like his brother, St Peter, Andrew is credited with spreading the gospel to several regions in Eastern Europe such as Georgia, Greece, Romania and Russia.
According to the tradition of the Georgian Orthodox Church, Andrew arrived in the Ajara region, in the south-west of present-day Georgia, having been told to go to Georgia by the Virgin Mary. The church regards him as the first preacher of Christianity in the region and the founder of the Georgian church.
In 60AD, he was working in Patras, where he baptised the wife and brother of the Governor, Aegeus. The Governor was so incensed by this, that St. Andrew was arrested and crucified on November 30th, which is his Feast Day.
The importance of St. Andrew to the Georgian Orthodox Church is such that he has a second feast day in