Mark's Story

If asked to tell the story of Jesus, my hunch is most people would use stories, teachings, sayings, and events from Matthew, Luke, and John, even if they couldn't tell you from which gospel the stories came. We tend to make a mishmash of the gospels. Think about Christmas pageants, cards, and carols which have the shepherds following the star and the wise men showing up at the manger at the same time as the shepherds. In addition, Mark's gospel doesn't seem to lend itself to our "telling" of the story of Jesus. Many of the most familiar and beloved stories about and from Jesus can't be found in Mark's story, but Mark is a storyteller par excellence. Nevertheless, just as Mark begins his story abruptly with John the Baptist and Jesus appearing on the scene full grown and ready to begin their ministries, he also ends his story in an abrupt manner:

kai; ejxelqou: sai e[fugon apo; tou: mnhmeivou, eicen ga;r aujta;V trovmo V kai; e[kstasiV kai; oujdeni; oujde;n eipan, ejfobou: nto gavr. (Mark 16:8)

And when they went out, they fled from the tomb, for trembling and amazement had them; and they said nothing to no one, for they were afraid.

Yes, Bibles include verses 9 - 20 at the end of Mark, but I am convinced that Mark ended his gospel with verse 8. What a strange ending - "They said nothing to no one, for they were afraid" - to a story whose purpose is to tell "the good news of Jesus Christ Son of God." (Mark 1:1)

This mysterious and abrupt ending of Mark's gospel and the immediacy of his story are the two main characteristics of this narrative account that captured my attention a few years ago. When I was in seminary at Union Theological Seminary in Virginia (now Union Presbyterian Seminary) from 1979-1983, and again when I was working on my Ph.D. in New Testament Biblical Studies (also at Union) from 1986-1991, I was immersed in the historical-critical method of biblical exegesis. The discipline of "narrative criticism" of the Bible was just being developed. If this new discipline of interpretation was mentioned at all, it was in passing and somewhat disparagingly.

But Mark tells a story - "the greatest story ever told!" - and his story deserves to be read, heard, and interpreted as such. The third characteristic of the gospel that fascinates me is that Mark was the first gospel written, around 65 C.E. Although not all scholars agree with this claim of Marcan priority, a convincing case can be made. Because Mark's gospel is first, the questions of Why? How? For what purpose? and For what use? naturally arise. This present project focuses on the latter question.