Cathedral Vision – Be Like Andrew
‘Saint Andrew’, Carlo Crivelli (1476), National Gallery, London
Cathedral Newsletter – 5 March 2026
Dear Friends, I am told by an eagle-eyed, historically-minded church member that this is the 200th Minister’s Letter I have published in this E-Newsletter, since I began here as Dean in December 2021.
So a good topic for such an occasion is the vision that should energise us as Christian believers in and around the Cathedral.
Since the day I have arrived, the way I have envisaged our ministry is this: introducing people to Jesus.
My inspiration for this is the Cathedral’s namesake: Andrew the Apostle.
This week, I again looked up every single mention of Andrew in the New Testament.
We discover he was one of the very first discples or followers of Jesus. He grew up in the town of Bethsaida, a fishing town, on the east of Lake Galilee (John 1:44). The Greek-speaking culture of the conquering Roman empire was stronger in that area. Indeed, unlike his brother, Simon’s Hebrew name, Andrew had a Greek name, which may hint at a certain cultural openness from his parents.
At some point, Andrew moved across the Lake to Capernaum, another fishing town, where he lived with his brother (Mark 1:29).
He also became a follower of John the Baptist. And when John identified Jesus as the Lamb of God, Andrew went to hang out with this new rabbi/teacher (John 1:35-40).
He evidently came to trust Jesus as God’s Chosen One (v34), because John 1:41-42 records this:
That’s where I get my vision for St Andrew’s Cathedral.
We want to bring people to Jesus, just like our apostolic namesake.
But it’s more than that. We want to introduce people to Jesus, so that they might gladly follow him. That’s what Simon, whom Jesus named Peter, immediately does.
Very soon the Gospels of Matthew 4:17-19 and Mark 1:15-16 record that Jesus called Simon Peter and Andrew not only to follow him, but to become “fishers of men”. That is, they would invite others to become believers in Jesus too.
Soon they are named as two of the original Twelve Apostles. They went on to witness Jesus’ teaching, miracles, death and resurrection. (Incidentally, Andrew is always listed among the first four of the Twelve.)
But we have none of his sermons recorded in Scripture, nor any of his writings.
What marks him out is that he introduces people to Jesus.
When Jesus teaches a crowd numbering 5000 in the wilderness near Bethsaida, Jesus puts Andrew’s friend Philip on the spot for catering, presumably because he, like Andrew, came from the local area. But Philip says they are too far from the towns and markets, and don’t have enough money anyway.
But Andrew pipes up to say that he’s found a little boy with five small loaves and two small fish (John 6:5-9), “but how far will they go among so many?”
Andrew is practical and solutions-focussed, but realistic.
And you know the story of the miracle that followed, where Jesus fed people in the desert.
But imagine being the boy that Andrew introduced to Jesus. Remember that some of the disciples had no time for children, since they wanted to shoo parents away when they brought their kids to Jesus for blessing (Mark 10:13-16).
Yet Andrew was alert to the presence and value of children, and made a special introduction.
Likewise, when some Greeks appeared among the Jews who came to worship at the Passover Festival in Jerusalem, they wanted to meet Jesus. They asked Philip for help – maybe because he had a Greek name, like Andrew. Philip didn’t quite know what to do. After all, Jesus had sent the Twelve to “the lost sheep of Israel” (Matthew 10:1-6).
But Andrew was sure; it was time to introduce the Greeks to Jesus.
Amazingly that introduction was the occasion for Jesus to declare the time had come for his death, like a seed falling to the ground, and producing a harvest of many seeds when the plant is newly raised up (John 12:20-24)!
And the rest of the New Testament is history, where many Jews and Gentiles, male and female, slave and free, Greeks and barbarians, came to hear about Jesus, his teaching, his deeds, and above all, his atoning death on the cross, and his triumphant resurrection from the grave.
That’s why I want us to be introducing people to Jesus too: so they can be saved from their sins; so they can joyfully follow Jesus in newness of life; so they can learn his ways in trust and obedience; so they, in turn, can bless a lost world by the love their Saviour inspires.
I love that the first person Andrew introduced to Jesus was his brother. And some of the first people we might pray for would be our family members who don’t know Jesus. I hope our Cathedral services, and music, and special events, like at Christmas and Easter, give you a chance to invite family members along.
And I love that Andrew introduced children to Jesus. So I rejoice in the presence of kids at the Cathedral and the growing team of volunteers who teach them his ways, along with our ministry of Scripture at Ultimo Public School and Christian education at the Cathedral School.
And we have such a unique position in the centre of a global city, with people of so many backgrounds, city and country, rich and poor, and multiple nationaliities voluntarily visiting our beautiful building. So I love the welcomers midweek and on Sundays who listen, respond and share Jesus where they can.
I love Street T breakfast, Bible and buddies with the community services hub. I love the English and Bible classes. I love the gospel display of Two Ways to Live in fifteen or more languages.I love the Healing Service, and DivorceCare, and Overcomers Outreach, where people can find hope and healing. And I love our Bible study and prayer groups, where people can learn more of God’s word in dependence on God and in fellowship together.
Let’s never grow tired of introducing people to Jesus, the most amazing person who has ever lived, and whose lived has changed history, and our personal history!
Warmly in Christ,
Sandy Grant
Dean of Sydney