2014-01-24

It just ain’t happening ... (Part 3 - of 12) ... it doesn't work any more

It just ain’t happening ... (Part 3 - of 12) ... faithfulness, wisdom, & prayer...when the miracles don’t come. Mark ch9v14-29 (to open in a new window, hold control down as you click the link)

 

Mark: Mediterranean Man, Message & Methods.

Eusebius (writing circa 325AD) quotes Papias’ (who lived ca. 60-130 AD, and wrote ca. 125 AD) that he heard from John the Presbyter that  “Mark, having become the interpreter of Peter, wrote down accurately, though not indeed in order, whatsoever he remembered of the things done or said by Christ.  For he neither heard the Lord nor followed him, but afterward, as I said, he followed Peter, who adapted his teaching to the needs of his hearers, but with no intention of giving a connected account of the Lord's discourses, so that Mark committed no error while he thus wrote some things as he remembered them.  For he was careful of one thing, not to omit any of the things which he had heard, and not to state any of them falsely."[1]  Papias tells us that Mark followed Peter, & became Peter’s interpreter. This last phrase could mean several things; Peter’s explainer/interpreter to the people, as Aaron spoke for “tongue-tied” Moses, or as Philip interpreted the scriptures for the Ethiopian official; or simply one who spoke or wrote fluently in one language for one who didn’t speak or write it so fluently,  as Joseph (feigned? when he) used an interpreter to speak to his brothers. There is some evidence that Peter may have been the oldest disciple[2], who would be expected to take the lead. He does seem to take the lead in a number of situations, and to have been quite bold & outspoken himself, so the first option appears to be less likely. On the other side is some evidence from a careful look at the wording of Papias’ quote[3]. Also, the Greek of 2nd Peter (which claims no help from an amanuensis, as does 1st Peter, from Silas) apparently does indicate significantly less fluency[4] than does “Mark”[5].

Clement (lived ca. 150-215) is also quoted by Eusebius: “As Peter had preached the Word publicly at Rome, and declared the Gospel by the Spirit, many who were present requested that Mark, who had followed him for a long time and remembered his sayings, should write them out.  And having composed the Gospel he gave it to those who had requested it.”[6]

Irenaeus (writing c175-185 A.D) is also quoted by Eusebius as telling us that Mark was writing down the gospel Peter proclaimed (to the Christians in Rome?)[7].


And Justin Martyr (writing c 150) mentions in passing: “...And when it is said that Jesus changed the name of one of the apostles to Peter; and when it is written in his memoirs that this so happened, as well as that he changed the names of other two brothers, the sons of Zebedee, to Boanerges, which means sons of thunder.[8]” Mark is the only gospel that mentions (3:16-17) these two events, thus it appears that Justin Martyr’s view of Mark could be summarized as “the memoirs of Peter”.

From the Mishnah’s record of Rabbinic methods of the first Century we learn, says Ray Vander Laan, that “great teachers used a technique today called remez or hint, in which they used part of a Scripture passage in discussion assuming their audience's knowledge of the Bible would allow them to deduce for themselves fuller meaning. Apparently Jesus used this method often[9]...This technique indicated a brilliant understanding of Scripture and incredible teaching skills on Jesus part. It also demonstrates the background knowledge of Scripture the common people had… Rabbis used similar teaching techniques like the use of parables. More than 3,500 parables from first century rabbis still exist and Jesus' are among the very best. He uses similar themes (landowner, king, and farmer) as well. (Matt. 13:3,34)”[10]

The Galileans were devoted followers of God, and Peter was one of these. Vander Laan continues:
“Since a talmid (disciple) was totally devoted to becoming like the Rabbi he would have spent his entire time listening and observing the teacher to know how to understand the Scripture and how to put it into practice. … Jesus describes his relationship to his disciples in exactly this way (Matthew 10:24-25; Luke 6:40) … They were to be ‘with’ him Mark 3:13-19; to follow him Mark 1:16-20; to live by his teaching John 8:31; were to imitate his actions… so they could be like him…  John 13:13-15; were to make everything else secondary to their learning from the rabbi Luke 14:26.
This may explain Peter’s walking on water (Matthew 14:22-33). When Jesus (the rabbi) walked on water, Peter (the talmid) wanted to be like him. Certainly Peter had not walked on water before nor could he have imagined being able to do it. But if the teacher, who chose me because he believed I could be like him, can do it, so must I. And he did!..[11]”
From the synoptic gospels[12] we learn that Jesus made a determined use of parable/story as a teaching method[13]. In fact Mark says “He would not speak to them without using parables. But when he was alone with his disciples, he would explain everything to them.[14]” This excerpt of a Poem on Jesus’ use of Story expresses it well for me:
These stories seemed to be like fish-hooks
baited with little bits of common truth,
leading further than you’d think from “first-looks”,
if only they were followed through.

This same method of stories prompting interest, imagination, & interaction has been employed by all four First Century Evangelists in their method of communicating this euangelion of God’s rule[15].



[2] It was apparently a practice amongst Rabbis to have an older “lead-disciple”(). Peter was already mentioned as married early in the story (Mark 1:29-31) and when Jesus organized the paying of the temple tax (which was for males over 20yr), there was only enough for the two of them, Jesus & Peter (Mat 17:24-27).
[3] for the point of view that  Mark may be the translator of a document originally written by Peter [presumably in Aramaic (or quite poor Greek?)], adding to it from his own memory of Peter’s oral tellings, see Terence Y. Mullins, Vigiliae Christianae, Vol. 14, No. 4 (Dec., 1960), pp. 216-224, Published by: BRILL,  Article Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1582193  or this link.
[4] “...parts of the letter seem to be “clumsy” and the author at points makes clear grammatical errors.” says Michael J. Kruger, “The Authenticity of 2 Peter,” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 42.4 (1999): 645-671.
[5] Mark’s Gospel, not being written in the classical Greek language or style, “though it is non-literary, ..(has).. a simple and popular style; it has affinities with the spoken Greek as revealed by the papyri and inscriptions. Moreover, the gospel has a Semitic flavor to it.” http://www.mycrandall.ca/courses/ntintro/mark.htm
[7] “Mark the disciple and interpreter of Peter, also transmitted to us in writing what had been preached by Peter” (Eusebius, Eccl. Hist., 5.8.3)
[9] e.g. “When the children sang Hosanna to him in the Temple and the Sadducees demanded Jesus quiet them he responded with a quote from Psalm 8:2 "From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise." Their anger at Jesus is better understood when you realize that the next phrase in the Psalm adds the reason why children and infants would praise, because of the enemies of God who would be silenced (Ps. 8:2). In other words the chief priests realized Jesus was implying they were God's enemies.
[9]Another example is Jesus' comments to Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1-10). Jesus said "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." (Luke 19:10) The background to this statement is probably Ezekiel 34. God, angry with the leaders of Israel for scattering and harming his flock (the people of Israel) states the he himself will become the shepherd and will seek the lost ones and deliver (save) them. Based on this the people of Jesus' day understood that the Messiah to come would "seek and save" the lost. By using this phrase, knowing the people knew the Scripture, Jesus said several things. To the people he said "I am the Messiah and God no less." To the leaders (whose influence kept Zacchaeus out of the crowd) he said "you have scattered and harmed God's flock." To Zacchaeus he said "you are one of God's lost sheep, he still loves you." 2003AD, available at http://followtherabbi.com/guide/detail/rabbi-and-talmidim & as a pdf here.
[12] Matthew, Mark, & Luke, which have a “similar point-of-view”=synoptic; John appears to be written purposefully to provide a lens from another angle. Together they give us a more stereoscopic view!
[15] Each “Gospel” employs (along with various collections of “teachings/sayings”) the broad style/genre of narrative, while stringing together a collections of smaller stories, pericope (pronounced “pur-i-cup-ee”), which appear to have been “told” (orally, rather than passed around as written “tracts”) for years before finally being written down.
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