Introduction

     The Gospel according to Mark begins with the statement that it is "the Good News about Jesus Christ, the Son of God." Jesus is pictured as a man of action and authority. His authority is seen in his teaching, in his power over demons, and in forgiving people's sins. Jesus speaks of himself as the Son of Man, who came to give his life to set people free from sin.

     Mark presents the story of Jesus in a straightforward, vigorous way, with emphasis on what Jesus did, rather than on his words and teachings. After a brief prologue about John the Baptist and the baptisim and temptation of Jesus, the writer immediately takes up Jesus's ministry of healing and teaching. As time goes on, the followers of Jesus come to understand him better, but Jesus' opponents become more hostile. The closing chapters report the events of Jesus' last week of earthly life, especially his crucifixion and resurrection.

     The two endings to the Gospel, which are enclosed in brackets, are generally regarded as written by someone other than the author of Mark.

Outline of Contents

     The beginning of the gospel  1.1-13

     Jesus' public ministry in Galilee  1.14-9.50

     From Galilee to Jerusalem  10.1-52

     The last week in and near Jerusalem  11.1-15.47

     The resurrection of Jesus  16.1-8

     The appearances and ascension of the risen Lord  16.9-20

Source: Good News Bible

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Remark 1: The followings are taken from "How the Bible Came About", written by Jerome Kodell, O.S.B", Good News Bible.

New Testament

     The information of a body of Christian writings into what we revere as the New Testament was a process comparable to the development of the Old Testament. Jesus left no written records. His Bible and that quoted by his disciple was the Old Testament. The first complete Christian document dates from twenty years after his time (1 Thessalonians); and it was another fifteen or so years before a Gospel (Mark) appeared. The New Testament literature, like that of the Old Testament, emerged within the community of believers according to their own needs and the guidance of the Spirit as they reflected on and responded to the drama of salvation in Christ.

     In the first years after the resurrection, there was little thought given to writing down a Christian library. Some of this was undoubtedly due to the example of the Lord himself who, like the rabbis of the time, taught by the sopken word, which inturn was remembered and discussed by disciples. There was no need for writing while the apostles were still alive to clarify or verify anything uncertain. Because his followers expected Jesus to return soon, any permanent writing of his teachings seemd uncessary, and perhaps even faithless.

     There was, however, some writing going on in the Christian community in the earliest decades. As in Israel, the liturgy was the mixture of songs, creeds, psalms and other prayers (Col. 3.16). Paul's writings contain excerpts from these sources (e.g., the hymns in Phis. 2.6-10 and Col. 1.15-20). Sayings of Jesus were being collected during the A.D. 30-40 period. They were eventually written to form a chain of episodes, appearing first probably in the Aramaic language, then in Greek. Parts of this document, now called "Q" from the German Quelle, "source," are traceable in Matthew and Luke. In addition to Q, there may have been other collections for the use of preachers: collections of parables, proof-texts from the Scriptures, and notes on various deeds of Jesus. There seems to have been an early wrirren account of the Passion.

     Paul: The first unified Christian writings to come down to us are the letters of Paul. They were attempts to bridge the distances as the apostle traveled from community to community in Asia Minor and Greece. Even in the earliest of these letters, 1 and 2 Thessalonians (A.D. 50-51), he used a pattern of correction, encouragement, and instruction which he later used in all his letters. Paul's major doctrinal work appeared in the Great Letters between A.D. 54 and 59: Calatians, 1 and 2 Corinthians, and Romans. The Captivity Letters (Philippians, Philemon, Colossians, and Ephesians) were written while Paul was in prison at various times in Caesarea, Ephesus, or Rome. Philippians, the most affectionate of Paul's letters, is the first of this group. Ephesians is the last, and differences in style and vocabulary from Paul's earlier have made his authorship of this letter appear questionable. Since it is not addressed to any particular community ("To the Ephesians" is a note added later), this letter may have been composed by one of Paul's disciples as a summary of Paul's doctrin to be circulated among the churches in Asia Minor.

     The Pastoral Letters (1 and 2 Timothy, Titus) given attention to the new situations that arose when Christian communities began to be settled and were more formally organized. The letter to the Hebrews, long thought to be written by Paul, is now recognized as the work of a later disciple. It presents an interpretation of Christ's priesthood which is uinque in the New Testament.

     Gospels: As Paul come to the end of his career, another development was underway which would produce the most distinctively Christian documents of the New Testament, the four Gospels. Because they are placed first in order among New Testament books in our Bibles and because they tell the story of Jesus, we tend to think the Gospels were the first Christian documents written. As we have seen, Paul's letters were the first Christian writings. In fact, Paul himself probaly died before the first Gospel, Mark, was in circulation.

     By the time Mark appeared, over thirty years had passed since Jesus' resurrection. The memory of Jesus' words and deeds was kept alive by preachers and storytellers in the various Christian communities. However, a traveler would have noticed differences in the memories of the various centers. A story was told with a different emphasis at Rome than at Jerusalem or Ephesus; Alexandria remembered incidents that had never been heard of at Corinth. There was a danger that some important materials or the meaning of it all would be lost. Many of the new converts were asking for a systematic presentation of the story of Jesus.

     Mark: The Gospel of Mark appeared on the scene around A.D. 65, just about the time that the great leaders, Peter and Paul, were martyred. It is difficult for us to appreciated the achievement that the writing of the first Gospel represents. Mark had to compose something for new Christians and for prospective converts that would tell the basic story, but not be too lengthy of heavy for the interested reader. By this time, information about Jesus' life and his tacdhing was complicated by inaccuracy and rumor. Theories about the meaning of God's saving act in Jesus needed to be sorted out and evaluated. As far as we know, Mark was the first writer of the life of Jesus, so he could not compare his work with that of others.

     The story he told became the source of Gospel writers to follow. It became the standard by which they evaluated information about Jesus. Mark is not simply a biography of Jesus; many questions about Jesus' life are left unanswered. Nor is it merely a catechism nor a sermon about the meaning of Jesus. But in a way it is all these things. The essentials of Jesus' life and teaching are presented and interpreted simply and clearly. But Mark does not get wound up in details. He does not recite everything that Jesus did; he records little of the preaching. He keeps the eyes of the reader on the person of Jesus, the Messenger of God, the Healer, the Savior.

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Remark 2: The following Introduction to the Gospel according to Mark prepared by New American Bible (for Catholics):

This shortest of all New Testament gospels is likely the first to have been written, yet it often tells of Jesus' ministry in more detail than either Matthew or Luke (for example, the miracle stories at Mark 5:1-20 or Mark 9:14-29). It recounts what Jesus did in a vivid style, where one incident follows directly upon another. In this almost breathless narrative, Mark stresses Jesus' message about the kingdom of God now breaking into human life as good news (Mark 1:14-15) and Jesus himself as the gospel of God (Mark 1:1; 8:35; 10:29). Jesus is the Son whom God has sent to rescue humanity by serving and by sacrificing his life (Mark 10:45).

The opening verse about good news in Mark (Mark 1:1) serves as a title for the entire book. The action begins with the appearance of John the Baptist, a messenger of God attested by scripture. But John points to a mightier one, Jesus, at whose baptism God speaks from heaven, declaring Jesus his Son. The Spirit descends upon Jesus, who eventually, it is promised, will baptize "with the holy Spirit." This presentation of who Jesus really is (Mark 1:1-13) is rounded out with a brief reference to the temptation of Jesus and how Satan's attack fails. Jesus as Son of God will be victorious, a point to be remembered as one reads of Jesus' death and the enigmatic ending to Mark's Gospel.

The key verses at Mark 1:14-15, which are programmatic, summarize what Jesus proclaims as gospel: fulfillment, the nearness of the kingdom, and therefore the need for repentance and for faith. After the call of the first four disciples, all fishermen (Mark 1:16-20), we see Jesus engaged in teaching (Mark 1:21, 22, 27), preaching (Mark 1:38, 39), and healing (Mark 1:29-31, 34, 40-45), and exorcising demons (1, 22-27.34.39). The content of Jesus' teaching is only rarely stated, and then chiefly in parables (Mark 4) about the kingdom. His cures, especially on the sabbath (Mark 3:1-5); his claim, like God, to forgive sins (Mark 2:3-12); his table fellowship with tax collectors and sinners (Mark 2:14-17); and the statement that his followers need not now fast but should rejoice while Jesus is present (Mark 2:18-22), all stir up opposition that will lead to Jesus' death (Mark 3:6).

In Mark, Jesus is portrayed as immensely popular with the people in Galilee during his ministry (Mark 2:2; 3:7; 4:1). He appoints twelve disciples to help preach and drive out demons, just as he does (Mark 3:13-19). He continues to work many miracles; the blocks Mark 4:35-6:44 and Mark 6:45-7:10 are cycles of stories about healings, miracles at the Sea of Galilee, and marvelous feedings of the crowds. Jesus' teaching in Mark 7 exalts the word of God over "the tradition of the elders" and sees defilement as a matter of the heart, not of unclean foods. Yet opposition mounts. Scribes charge that Jesus is possessed by Beelzebul (Mark 3:22). His relatives think him "out of his mind" (Mark 3:21). Jesus' kinship is with those who do the will of God, in a new eschatological family, not even with mother, brothers, or sisters by blood ties (Mark 3:31-35; cf Mark 6:1-6). But all too often his own disciples do not understand Jesus (Mark 4:13, 40; 6:52; 8:17-21). The fate of John the Baptist (Mark 6:17-29) hints ominously at Jesus' own passion (Mark 9:13; cf Mark 8:31).

A breakthrough seemingly comes with, Peter's confession that Jesus is the Christ (Messiah; Mark 8:27-30). But Jesus himself emphasizes his passion (Mark 8:31; 9:31; 10:33-34), not glory in the kingdom (Mark 10:35-45). Momentarily he is glimpsed in his true identity when he is transfigured before three of the disciples (Mark 9:2-8), but by and large Jesus is depicted in Mark as moving obediently along the way to his cross in Jerusalem. Occasionally there are miracles (Mark 9:17-27; 10:46-52; 11:12-14, 20-21, the only such account in Jerusalem), sometimes teachings (Mark 10:2-11, 23-31), but the greatest concern is with discipleship (Mark 8:34-9:1; 9:33-50). For the disciples do not grasp the mystery being revealed (Mark 9:32; 10:32, 38). One of them will betray him, Judas (Mark 14:10-11, 43-45); one will deny him, Peter (Mark 14:27, 31, 54, 66-72); all eleven men will desert Jesus (Mark 14:27, 50).

The passion account, with its condemnation of Jesus by the Sanhedrin (Mark 14:53, 55-65; 15:1a) and sentencing by Pilate (Mark 15:1b-15), is prefaced with the entry into Jerusalem (Mark 11:1-11), ministry and controversies there (Mark 11:15-12:44), Jesus' Last Supper with the disciples (Mark 14:1-26), and his arrest at Gethsemane (Mark 14:32-52). A chapter of apocalyptic tone about the destruction of the temple (Mark 13:1-2, 14-23) and the coming of the Son of Man (Mark 13:24-27), a discourse filled with promises (Mark 13:11, 31) and admonitions to be watchful (Mark 13:2, 23, 37), is significant for Mark's Gospel, for it helps one see that God, in Jesus, will be victorious after the cross and at the end of history.

The Gospel of Mark ends in the most ancient manuscripts with an abrupt scene at Jesus' tomb, which the women find empty (Mark 16:1-8). His own prophecy of Mark 14:28 is reiterated, that Jesus goes before the disciples into Galilee; "there you will see him." These words may imply resurrection appearances there, or Jesus' parousia there, or the start of Christian mission, or a return to the roots depicted in Mark 1:9, 14-15 in Galilee. Other hands have attached additional endings after Mark 16:8; see the note on Mark 16:9-20.

The framework of Mark's Gospel is partly geographical: Galilee (Mark 1L14-9:49), through the area "across the Jordan" (Mark 10:1) and through Jericho (Mark 10:46-52), to Jerusalem (Mark 11:1-16:8). Only rarely does Jesus go into Gentile territory (Mark 5:1-20; 7:24-37), but those who acknowledge him there and the centurion who confesses Jesus at the cross (Mark 15:39) presage the gospel's expansion into the world beyond Palestine.

Mark's Gospel is even more oriented to christology. Jesus is the Son of God (Mark 1:11; 9:7; 15:39; cf Mark 1:1; 14:61). He is the Messiah, the anointed king of Davidic descent (Mark 12:35; 15:32), the Greek for which, Christos, has, by the time Mark wrote, become in effect a proper name (Mark 1:1; 9:41). Jesus is also seen as Son of Man, a term used in Mark not simply as a substitute for "I" or for humanity in general (cf Mark 2:10, 27-28; 14:21) or with reference to a mighty figure who is to come (Mark 13:26; 14:62), but also in connection with Jesus' predestined, necessary path of suffering and vindication (Mark 8:31; 10:45).

The unfolding of Mark's story about Jesus is sometimes viewed by interpreters as centered around the term "mystery." The word is employed just once, at Mark 4:11, in the singular, and its content there is the kingdom, the open secret that God's reign is now breaking into human life with its reversal of human values. There is a related sense in which Jesus' real identity remained a secret during his lifetime, according to Mark, although demons and demoniacs knew it (Mark 1:24; 3:11; 5:7); Jesus warned against telling of his mighty deeds and revealing his identity (Mark 1:44; 3:12; 5:43; 7:36; 8:26, 30), an injunction sometimes broken (Mark 1:45; cf Mark 5:19-20). Further, Jesus teaches by parables, according to Mark, in such a way that those "outside" the kingdom do not understand, but only those to whom the mystery has been granted by God.

Mark thus shares with Paul, as well as with other parts of the New Testament, an emphasis on election (Mark 13:20, 22) and upon the gospel as Christ and his cross (cf 1 Cor 1:23). Yet in Mark the person of Jesus is also depicted with an unaffected naturalness. He reacts to events with authentic human emotion: pity (Mark 1:44), anger (Mark 3:5), triumph (Mark 4:40), sympathy (Mark 5:36; 6:34), surprise (Mark 6:9), admiration (Mark 7:29; 10:21), sadness (Mark 14:33-34), and indignation (Mark 14:48-49).

Although the book is anonymous, apart from the ancient heading "According to Mark" in manuscripts, it has traditionally been assigned to John Mark, in whose mother's house (at Jerusalem) Christians assembled (Acts 12:12). This Mark was a cousin of Barnabas (Col 4:10) and accompanied Barnabas and Paul on a missionary journey (Acts 12:25; 13:3; 15:36- 39). He appears in Pauline letters (2 Tim 4:11; Philippians 1:24) and with Peter (1 Peter 5:13). Papias (ca. A.D. 135) described Mark as Peter's "interpreter," a view found in other patristic writers. Petrine influence should not, however, be exaggerated. The evangelist has put together various oral and possibly written sources--miracle stories, parables, sayings, stories of controversies, and the passion--so as to speak of the crucified Messiah for Mark's own day.

Traditionally, the gospel is said to have been written shortly before A.D. 70 in Rome, at a time of impending persecution and when destruction loomed over Jerusalem. Its audience seems to have been Gentile, unfamiliar with Jewish customs (hence Mark 7:3-4, 11). The book aimed to equip such Christians to stand faithful in the face of persecution (Mark 13:9-13), while going on with the proclamation of the gospel begun in Galilee (Mark 13:10; 14:9). Modern research often proposes as the author an unknown Hellenistic Jewish Christian, possibly in Syria, and perhaps shortly after the year 70.

The principal divisions of the Gospel according to Mark are the following:

1. The Preparation for the Public Ministry of Jesus (Mark 1:1-13)
2. The Mystery of Jesus (Mark 1:14-8:26)
3. The Mystery Begins to Be Revealed (Mark 8:27-9:32)
4. The Full Revelation of the Mystery (Mark 9:33-16:8)
   The Longer Ending (Mark 16:9-20)
   The Shorter Ending
   The Freer Logion (in the note on Mark 16:9-20)

Source: http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/mark/intro.htm

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Remark 3: The following Korean document may be also helpful in understanding how the four Gospels are related, including, for instance, who wrote them, etc.