Advent begins by calculating the Sunday closest to St. Andrew’s day. That’s today, November 30. That calculation ensures there are always exactly four Sundays in Advent. But there is more at work here.

Andrew is among the first called to be a disciple of Jesus. The Greeks titled Andrew Prōtoklētos - the “first called.” Andrew and a friend had been disciples of John the Baptist. They listened to John, who pointed them to Jesus and said, “Look! That’s the Lamb of God!”

That’s astonishing on many levels. What kind of preacher sends his own members away? …