Come and See

Sunday November 30, 2025In today's Gospel, we read about how St. John the Baptist's initial disciples begin their transition from following John to following Jesus. Before Jesus ever decisively asked them to become “fishers of men” on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, it was St. John the Baptist who pointed them in Jesus' direction. Interestingly, Andrew, whose memory we celebrate today, was the first to begin taking interest in Jesus as the possible Messiah. This is why Andrew is known in the Church as the “first-called” apostle. Andrew was curious about Jesus but did not have enough evidence to fully commit. Jesus, knowing this, prompted Andrew to take a closer look with the famous invitation: “Come and see!” Andrew accepted this invitation and stayed with Jesus the whole day. Based on this up-close and first-hand experience of Jesus, Andrew was convinced that he had found the Messiah. He then went and told his brother Peter and personally brought Peter to Jesus. Most often, this is exactly how Christianity is spread from person to person, by word of mouth. To further illustrate this point, the next day in today's Gospel, Philip tells Nathanael about Jesus. When Nathanael pushes back with his own questions, Philip offers him Jesus' own line: “Come and see!” Word-of-mouth evangelism works once again. Nathanael comes to Jesus based on Philip's testimony, but he comes to his own conclusion of faith once he meets Jesus. The conversion of the first disciples of Christ through word-of-mouth sharing, starting with John the Baptist and continuing with Andrew and Philip beautifully illustrates the recent Epistle reading from Sunday, November 16th, which says, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach [share] the good news!”While it is true that many people are flocking to Orthodox Christian churches, including St. Catherine, most of these inquirers are coming because of what they are hearing and seeing through the internet, YouTube, and podcasts, not from the word-of-mouth testimony from us. This means that many of our own family, friends and acquaintances may not be Orthodox, or if they are, may not be as committed as they could be. Our own word-of-mouth testimony, along with the genuine witness of our lives, could go a long way to bringing them closer to Christ and His Church. Remember, the more committed we are in our own faith, the more intimate relationship we have with Jesus Christ, the more naturally and organically will be our desire to share this “best thing” with those closest to us and the more powerful will be our testimony.