Rev. Michael Piazza in Liberating Word says of Mark 1 "Mark is clearly not a biography of Jesus. There are no birth stories in Mark and no genealogies. In this version, Jesus strides onto the scene fully grown and ready to go to work. There is a brief description of John the Baptist, complete with a quote from the prophecy of Isaiah that predicted his coming. Then, by verse nine, Jesus shows up to be baptized. The reference to Isaiah with which Mark begins his Gospel leaves you with the impression that, like Matthew, Mark plans to present the story of Jesus as a fulfillment of the predictions of the Hebrew prophets. Such is not the case, however. In fact, Mark often explains the Jewish practices that we encounter. This makes it clear that his Gospel wasn’t written for a primarily Jewish audience. It is difficult to ascertain exactly to whom Mark is writing. He uses an economy of words. The story of the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness is dispatched in just two verses, and by verse 14 John the Baptist has been arrested and Jesus has gone to work. Perhaps it is this economy of words that caused Mark’s Gospel to be neglected by the church. In the early Church almost all sermons and writings referenced Matthew or Luke. The neglect of Mark may have been the reason that the ending of the Gospel seems to have been lost. A second-century historian named Papias was the first to offer an explanation for why Mark writes as he does. Papias suggested, and tradition has since held, that Mark was simply a collection of stories told, and sermons given, by Peter. It is impossible to know if this early analysis is correct. However, as the first Gospel written, current scholars seeking to uncover the “historic Jesus” pay close attention to Mark, and it has taken on more importance. Scholars like Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan challenge us to distinguish between the historic Jesus and the Church’s Christ. They do not allow us to accept one and reject the other, but ask us to know the difference. I have found that to be much more difficult than they believe it to be. However, it is important for us to remember that, often, the Jesus we encounter today is as much a product of the Church’s teaching as history. That is why looking at a bare Gospel like Mark is so helpful."
Rev. Michael Piazza in Liberating Word says of Mark 1 "Mark is clearly not a biography of Jesus. There are no birth stories in Mark and no genealogies. In this version, Jesus strides onto the scene fully grown and ready to go to work. There is a brief description of John the Baptist, complete with a quote from the prophecy of Isaiah that predicted his coming. Then, by verse nine, Jesus shows up to be baptized.
ReplyDeleteThe reference to Isaiah with which Mark begins his Gospel leaves you with the impression that, like Matthew, Mark plans to present the story of Jesus as a fulfillment of the predictions of the Hebrew prophets. Such is not the case, however. In fact, Mark often explains the Jewish practices that we encounter. This makes it clear that his Gospel wasn’t written for a primarily Jewish audience.
It is difficult to ascertain exactly to whom Mark is writing. He uses an economy of words. The story of the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness is dispatched in just two verses, and by verse 14 John the Baptist has been arrested and Jesus has gone to work. Perhaps it is this economy of words that caused Mark’s Gospel to be neglected by the church. In the early Church almost all sermons and writings referenced Matthew or Luke. The neglect of Mark may have been the reason that the ending of the Gospel seems to have been lost.
A second-century historian named Papias was the first to offer an explanation for why Mark writes as he does. Papias suggested, and tradition has since held, that Mark was simply a collection of stories told, and sermons given, by Peter. It is impossible to know if this early analysis is correct. However, as the first Gospel written, current scholars seeking to uncover the “historic Jesus” pay close attention to Mark, and it has taken on more importance.
Scholars like Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan challenge us to distinguish between the historic Jesus and the Church’s Christ. They do not allow us to accept one and reject the other, but ask us to know the difference. I have found that to be much more difficult than they believe it to be. However, it is important for us to remember that, often, the Jesus we encounter today is as much a product of the Church’s teaching as history. That is why looking at a bare Gospel like Mark is so helpful."