| Gospel of Mark (Fall 2017)-Basilica Bible Discussion Study Welcome to the online extension of our Wednesday evening Study of the Gospel of St. Mark! Please feel free to use this with other members of our group who opt in for: (i) a continued discussion of our past topics; and/or (ii) questions or discussions for our upcoming Wednesday discussion. Please remember this is an opt-in only adjunct to our discussions and is a private discussion of only our group members utilizing our group confidentiality and respect rules that we follow on Wednesday evenings. You can click on the "Board Rules and Communication Agreement" above to review. Sara Lawrence suggested the possible addition of this outlet for all of us and has done the leg work on its creation. We hope you find it beneficial. Peace, Join our community! If you're already a member please log in to your account to access all of our features: |
| Introduction to Gospel of Mark / Daniel J. Harrington, S.J.; Introduction from New Jerome Biblical Commentary | |
|---|---|
| Tweet Topic Started: Nov 8 2017, 03:00 PM (6 Views) | |
| Nick | Nov 8 2017, 03:00 PM Post #1 |
|
(I) Authorship, Date and Place of Composition. Nothing in the Gospel identifies its author by name, since the label “according to Mark” was added later. That label probably reflects the identification made in patristic times between the author of this Gospel and John Mark (Acts 12:12,25; 13:5-13; 15:37-39; Col 4:10; Phlm 24; Tim 4:11). Although Mark is usually portrayed as Paul’s companion, 1 Pet describes him as Peter’s coworker (“my son mark”). The earliest explicit statement about Mark as the author of a Gospel came from Papias of Hierapolis (early 2d cent., quote in Eusebius, HE 3.39.15): “Mark, having become Peter’s interpreter, wrote down accurately whatever he remembered of what was said or done by the Lord, however not in order.” On the strength of Papias’s statement and the affirmation of it by other early Christian writers, the Gospel is traditionally ascribed to Mark the “interpreter of Peter” and placed in Rome after Peter’s death ca. AD 64-67. Although the patristic tradition is unanimous in asserting that Mark wrote this Gospel, some problems with Papias’s witness suggest caution in regarding Mark as the “Gospel of Peter.” What does “interpreter” (hermeneutēs) mean? Is the comment about the order of materials an apology for differences among the Gospels? Why did Papias go on to insist on the accuracy and veracity of the Gospel? Although such questions do not warrant cavalier dismissal of the Papias tradition about Mark, they warn against naïve reliance upon it. Peter appears in many incidents in the Gospel and could have been a source of information about sayings and deeds of Jesus. Nevertheless, as an interpretative principle, it is better not to lean too heavily on the assumption that Peter was Mark’s sole or even primary conduit to Jesus’ public ministry. That Mark wrote in Rome is suggested not only by Papias but also by Latin loanwords in the Greek text and by the atmosphere of impending persecution that pervades the Gospel. Since Mark 13 does not presuppose the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple, the Gospel was most likely composed before AD 70. A setting in the 60s at Rome seems best, for then the Christian community lived under the threat (or reality) of persecution and looked upon incipient revolt in Palestine as a source of potential trouble for the Jewish (and even Gentile) Christians at Rome. (II) Literary Structure and Content. As the outline proposed below indicates, the Gospel displays a tight geographical-theological structure. The geographical aspect features the movement from Galilee to Jerusalem. After the prologue (1:1-15), the first half of the Gospel describes Jesus’ activity in Galilee and beyond (1:16-8:21). The second half focuses on Jerusalem: the journey from Galilee to Jerusalem (8:22-10:52), the symbolic actions and teachings during the part of the passion week in Jerusalem (11:1-13:37), and the passion and death there (14:1-16-8). There may be some narrative opposition between Galilee and Jerusalem (acceptance vs. rejection, order vs. chaos), though this insight should not be applied too mechanically. The theological aspect of the outline highlights the authority (exousia) of Jesus. Once we know who Jesus is (1:1-15), we see his authority revealed in work and word (1:16-3:6), his rejection by his own people (3:7-6:6a), and the misunderstanding of him even by his disciples (6:6b-8:21). On the way up to Jerusalem (8:22-10:52), Jesus clarifies the nature of his authority and spells out its consequences for his followers. At Jerusalem he encounters resistance to his teaching (11:1-13:37) and meets a cruel and tragic death at the hands of those who reject his authority (14:1-16:8). With the imposition of this geographical-theological outline on his sources, Mark created the literary genre of Gospel. Paul and other early Christians used the term evangelion, “gospel,” as the “good news” about God’s action in Jesus Christ. As the first one to write an account of Jesus’ ministry in an orderly fashion, Mark appears to have created a model followed and developed by other evangelists. Mark had various kinds of traditions at his disposal: sayings, parables, controversies, healing stories, and other miracles, and probably a passion narrative. Some of these traditions may also have been groups: controversies (2:1-3:6), seed parables (4:1-34), miracles (4:34-5:43), etc. Mark gave an order and a plot to these sayings and incidents, connected them with bridge passages, and added parenthetical comments for the sake of his readers. Mark wrote his Gospel to deepen the faith of the members of his community. By showing them how the traditions about Jesus related to their belief in the saving significance of the cross and resurrection, the evangelist equipped them to face persecution and resist the temptations of their world. Other theories about mark’s purpose are more speculative: to preserve the reminiscences of Peter and other eyewitnesses, to combat a false Christology or some other heresy, to provide a lectionary for Christian worship, or to provide material for Christian baptismal or Easter liturgies. (III) Marcan Theology. The focus of Mark’s theology is the focus of Jesus’ theology – the kingdom of God. What is taught about Christology (who Jesus is) and discipleship (response to Jesus) takes its framework from the kingdom of God. The prologue of the Gospel (1:1-15) climaxes in a sample of Jesus’s preaching: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has drawn near. Repent and believe in the good news.” In Judaism of Jesus’ time the “kingdom of God” referred to the definitive display of God’s lordship at the end of history and its acknowledgment by all creation. Much of Jesus’ teaching (esp. the parables) aimed at deepening the people’s understanding of the coming kingdom and preparing for it. Even his healings appear as anticipations of what life in God’s kingdom will be like. That kingdom is now largely hidden, though in Jesus it is inaugurated and anticipated. While Jesus taught about the kingdom of God in parables, his life was really the parable par excellence of the kingdom. Mark’s message is that whoever wishes to understand the kingdom must look at Jesus the healer, the teacher, and the crucified-and-risen one. The large amount of space devoted to healings and exorcisms proves that Mark knew and revered Jesus as a wonder-worker. The miracles are balanced by teaching in both word and deed. But the way in which Mark has outlined the story of Jesus suggests that the passion and death constituted its climax. Without the cross, the portrayals of Jesus as wonder-worker and teacher are unbalanced and without a directing principle. Within this framework, Mark made ample use of the common stock of Christological titles available: Messiah, Son of God, Son of man, Lord, Son of David, Suffering Servant, and Suffering Just One. A peculiar feature of Marcan Christology is often called “the messianic secret.” The idea took its rise form the several instances in which Jesus commands people to be silent about his action or identity (see 1:34,44; 3:12;5:43; 7:36; 8:26,30; 9:9). W. Wrede explained this phenomenon as Mark’s way of accounting for the fact that Jesus in his public ministry neither claimed to be the Messiah nor was recognized as such. Jesus, indeed, does not take to himself the title of Messiah without serious qualification (see 8:27-38). Moreover, the whole thrust of Mark shows that the real meaning of Jesus’ messiahship became clear only with his death and resurrection. Also, since in some Jewish circles (Pss. Sol. 17) the longed-for Messiah had political and military functions, the Marcan ambivalence in this matter may reflect an unwillingness to provoke the Roman authorities. However, the commands to silence and the development of Jesus’ messiahship in Mark are more complex than Wrede’s theory allowed. The response to Jesus’ person is discipleship. Mark’s presentation of the earliest disciples was based on the parallelism between them and the members of this community. The passages relating the call of the first disciples (1:16-20; 2:13-14; 3:13-19; 6:6b-13) are among the most positive stories in the Gospel. The Marcan ideal of discipleship is “being with” Jesus, sharing his mission of preaching and healing (3:14-15). As the narrative proceeds, the disciples repeatedly fail to understand Jesus (6:52; 8:14-21). ON the way to Jerusalem Jesus predicts his passion and resurrection three times (8:31; 9:31; 10:33-34); each prediction is followed by disciples’ misunderstanding (8:32-33; 9:32-37; 10:35-45). The passion narrative pivots on the betrayal of Jesus by Judas (14:17-21; 14:43-52) and the denial of Jesus by Peter (14:26-31; 14:54,66-72). In the first half of the Gospel the disciples are portrayed as examples to be imitated; in the second half, they are examples to be avoided. The effect of this shift is to highlight the person of Jesus as the only one who deserves imitation. But the idea that Mark waged a polemic against the disciples seems farfetched. |
![]() |
|
| 1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous) | |
| « Previous Topic · General Discussion · Next Topic » |






1:24 PM Jul 11