We know very little about the life of Saint Peter’s brother after the Ascension of the Lord. According to ancient testimonies—which, however, are far from completely reliable—Andrew’s missionary work covered a wide area: Pontus and Bithynia, Scythia and Thrace, Epirus and Achaia.
The tradition that he died on an X-shaped cross is not based on unanimous evidence. His relics, said to have been taken first to Constantinople and later to Amalfi, also lack solid historical certainty. His head, which arrived in Rome in 1462, was returned to Greece by Pope Paul VI.
Saint Gregory the Great, who came back from Constantinople with a deep devotion to the apostle, introduced Andrew’s name into the Libera nos prayer of the Roman Mass. November 30, as his feast day, was already known to Saint Gregory Nazianzen and other ancient Fathers.
