The Gospel According to Mark

The Gospel of Mark, the earliest of the four canonical Gospels of the New Testament, depicts the life and ministry of Jesus in terse, simple form but with an already weighty theological agenda. Writing several decades after Jesus' death, Mark presents a messianic vision of contemporary discipleship, in the shadow of imperial opposition, focused on and defined by the crucifixion at its narrative climax. This course will explore the possible historical and cultural origins and backgrounds of the Gospel while paying close attention to the text's literary and theological aspects and its history of effects and ongoing significance in today's world.