Mark the Evangelist is the traditional author of the
Gospel of MarkThe Gospel According to Mark , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Mark or simply Mark, is the second book of the New Testament. This canonical account of the life of Jesus of Nazareth is one of the three synoptic gospels. It was thought to be an epitome, which accounts for its place as the second...
. He is one of the
Seventy Disciples of ChristThe seventy disciples or seventy-two disciples were early followers of Jesus mentioned in the Gospel of Luke . According to Luke, the only gospel in which they appear, Jesus appointed them and sent them out in pairs on a specific mission which is detailed in the text...
, and the founder of the
Church of AlexandriaThe Church of Alexandria in Egypt is the particular church headed by the Patriarch of Alexandria. It is one of the original four Apostolic Sees of Christianity, with Rome, Antioch and Jerusalem ....
, one of the original four main
seesAn episcopal see is, in the original sense, the official seat of a bishop. This seat, which is also referred to as the bishop's cathedra, is placed in the bishop's principal church, which is therefore called the bishop's cathedral...
of
ChristianityChristianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
.
According to William Lane, an "unbroken tradition" identifies Mark the Evangelist with
John MarkJohn Mark is a character in the New Testament. According to William Lane, an "unbroken tradition" identifies him with Mark the Evangelist. John Mark is mentioned several times in the Acts of the Apostles...
. However, Hippolytus, in his work
On the Seventy Apostles distinguishes Mark the Evangelist (2 Tim 4:11),
John MarkJohn Mark is a character in the New Testament. According to William Lane, an "unbroken tradition" identifies him with Mark the Evangelist. John Mark is mentioned several times in the Acts of the Apostles...
(Acts 12:12, 25; 13:5, 13; 15: 37) and
Mark the Cousin of BarnabasMark the Cousin of Barnabas is a character in the New Testament. He is usually identified with John Mark , although Hippolytus of Rome thought them to be separate people...
(Col 4:10; Phlm 24). According to Hippolytus, they all belonged to the "
Seventy DisciplesThe seventy disciples or seventy-two disciples were early followers of Jesus mentioned in the Gospel of Luke . According to Luke, the only gospel in which they appear, Jesus appointed them and sent them out in pairs on a specific mission which is detailed in the text...
" who were sent out by
JesusJesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
to saturate
JudeaJudea or Judæa was the name of the mountainous southern part of the historic Land of Israel from the 8th century BCE to the 2nd century CE, when Roman Judea was renamed Syria Palaestina following the Jewish Bar Kokhba revolt.-Etymology:The...
with the
gospelA gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
(
LukeThe Gospel According to Luke , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Luke or simply Luke, is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels. This synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. It details his story from the events of his birth to his Ascension.The...
10:1ff.). However, when Jesus explained that
His fleshIn Roman Catholic theology, transubstantiation means the change, in the Eucharist, of the substance of wheat bread and grape wine into the substance of the Body and Blood, respectively, of Jesus, while all that is accessible to the senses remains as before.The Eastern Orthodox...
was "real food" and His blood was "real drink", many
disciplesIn Christianity, the disciples were the students of Jesus during his ministry. While Jesus attracted a large following, the term disciple is commonly used to refer specifically to "the Twelve", an inner circle of men whose number perhaps represented the twelve tribes of Israel...
left him (John 6:44-6:66), presumably including Mark. He was later restored to faith by
PeterSaint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
; then became Peter’s interpreter, wrote the
Gospel of MarkThe Gospel According to Mark , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Mark or simply Mark, is the second book of the New Testament. This canonical account of the life of Jesus of Nazareth is one of the three synoptic gospels. It was thought to be an epitome, which accounts for its place as the second...
, founded the
church of AfricaChristianity is now one of the two most widely practised religions in Africa and is the largest religion in Sub-Saharan Africa. Most adherents outside Egypt, Ethiopia and Eritrea are Roman Catholic or Protestant. The presence of Christianity in Africa began in the middle of the 1st century in...
, and became the bishop of Alexandria.
According to
Eusebius of CaesareaEusebius of Caesarea also called Eusebius Pamphili, was a Roman historian, exegete and Christian polemicist. He became the Bishop of Caesarea in Palestine about the year 314. Together with Pamphilus, he was a scholar of the Biblical canon...
(
Eccl. Hist. 2.9.1-4), Herod Agrippa I in his first year of reign over the whole
JudeaJudea or Judæa was the name of the mountainous southern part of the historic Land of Israel from the 8th century BCE to the 2nd century CE, when Roman Judea was renamed Syria Palaestina following the Jewish Bar Kokhba revolt.-Etymology:The...
(AD 41) killed James son of
ZebedeeZebedee is a name which may refer to:-People:* Zebedee , father of James and John* Zebedee Armstrong , an American outsider artist...
, and arrested Peter, planning to kill him after the
PassoverPassover is a Jewish holiday and festival. It commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt...
. Peter was saved miraculously by
angelsAngels are mythical beings often depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles along with the Quran. The English word angel is derived from the Greek ἄγγελος, a translation of in the Hebrew Bible ; a similar term, ملائكة , is used in the Qur'an...
, and escaped out of the realm of Herod (Acts 12:1-19). Peter went to
AntiochAntioch on the Orontes was an ancient city on the eastern side of the Orontes River. It is near the modern city of Antakya, Turkey.Founded near the end of the 4th century BC by Seleucus I Nicator, one of Alexander the Great's generals, Antioch eventually rivaled Alexandria as the chief city of the...
, then through
Asia MinorAsia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...
(visiting the churches in
PontusPontus or Pontos is a historical Greek designation for a region on the southern coast of the Black Sea, located in modern-day northeastern Turkey. The name was applied to the coastal region in antiquity by the Greeks who colonized the area, and derived from the Greek name of the Black Sea: Πόντος...
,
GalatiaAncient Galatia was an area in the highlands of central Anatolia in modern Turkey. Galatia was named for the immigrant Gauls from Thrace , who settled here and became its ruling caste in the 3rd century BC, following the Gallic invasion of the Balkans in 279 BC. It has been called the "Gallia" of...
,
CappadociaCappadocia is a historical region in Central Anatolia, largely in Nevşehir Province.In the time of Herodotus, the Cappadocians were reported as occupying the whole region from Mount Taurus to the vicinity of the Euxine...
, Asia, and
BithyniaBithynia was an ancient region, kingdom and Roman province in the northwest of Asia Minor, adjoining the Propontis, the Thracian Bosporus and the Euxine .-Description:...
, as mentioned in 1 Pet 1:1), and arrived in
RomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
in the second year of Emperor Claudius (AD 42; Eusebius, Eccl, Hist. 2.14.6). Somewhere on the way, Peter picked up Mark and took him as travel companion and interpreter. Peter's preaching in Rome was so successful that he was honored by the inhabitants with a statue in the city; and by popular request, Mark the Evangelist wrote down the
sermonsA sermon is an oration by a prophet or member of the clergy. Sermons address a Biblical, theological, religious, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law or behavior within both past and present contexts...
of Peter, thus composing the Gospel according to Mark (
Eccl. Hist. 15-16), before he left for Alexandria in the third year of Claudius (AD 43).
In AD 43, about 10 years after the ascension of Christ, Mark traveled to
AlexandriaAlexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
and founded the
Church of AlexandriaThe Church of Alexandria in Egypt is the particular church headed by the Patriarch of Alexandria. It is one of the original four Apostolic Sees of Christianity, with Rome, Antioch and Jerusalem ....
, which today is claimed by the Coptic Orthodox Church. Aspects of the Coptic liturgy can be traced back to Saint Mark himself. He became the first
bishopA bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of Alexandria and he is honored as the founder of Christianity in
AfricaAfrica is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
.
According to Eusebius (
Eccl. Hist. 2.24.1), Mark was succeeded by Annianus as the bishop of Alexandria in the eighth year of
NeroNero , was Roman Emperor from 54 to 68, and the last in the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Nero was adopted by his great-uncle Claudius to become his heir and successor, and succeeded to the throne in 54 following Claudius' death....
(AD 62/63), probably, but not definitely due to his coming death. Later Coptic tradition says that he was martyred in AD 68.
It is believed that on the night when Jesus was arrested in the garden of Gethsemane Mark had followed him there and the Temple guards saw him, he ran away and dropped his
loin clothA loincloth is a one-piece male garment, sometimes kept in place by a belt, which covers the genitals and, at least partially, the buttocks.-History and types:Loincloths are being and have been worn:*in societies where no other clothing is needed or wanted...
.
His feast day is celebrated on April 25, and his symbol is the
lionThe lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
.
Biblical and traditional information
Evidence for Mark the Evangelist's authorship of the Gospel that bears his name originates with Papias. According to Carson,
MooDouglas J. Moo is a New Testament scholar who, after teaching for more than twenty years at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Illinois, has served as Blanchard Professor of New Testament at the Wheaton College Graduate School since 2000. He received his Ph.D. at the University of St. Andrews,...
and
MorrisLeon Lamb Morris was an Australian New Testament scholar.Born in Lithgow, New South Wales, Morris was ordained to the Anglican ministry in 1938. He received his Ph.D. at the University of Cambridge in England on the subject which became his first major book, The Apostolic Preaching of the Cross...
, it is "almost certain" that Papias is referring to
John MarkJohn Mark is a character in the New Testament. According to William Lane, an "unbroken tradition" identifies him with Mark the Evangelist. John Mark is mentioned several times in the Acts of the Apostles...
. However, some have argued that identifying Mark the Evangelist with
John MarkJohn Mark is a character in the New Testament. According to William Lane, an "unbroken tradition" identifies him with Mark the Evangelist. John Mark is mentioned several times in the Acts of the Apostles...
and
Mark the Cousin of BarnabasMark the Cousin of Barnabas is a character in the New Testament. He is usually identified with John Mark , although Hippolytus of Rome thought them to be separate people...
has led to the downgrading of the character of
BarnabasBarnabas , born Joseph, was an Early Christian, one of the earliest Christian disciples in Jerusalem. In terms of culture and background, he was a Hellenised Jew, specifically a Levite. Named an apostle in , he and Saint Paul undertook missionary journeys together and defended Gentile converts...
from truly a "Son of Comfort" to one who favored his blood relative over principles.
The identification of Mark the Evangelist with
John MarkJohn Mark is a character in the New Testament. According to William Lane, an "unbroken tradition" identifies him with Mark the Evangelist. John Mark is mentioned several times in the Acts of the Apostles...
led to identifying him as the man who carried water to
the house whereThe Cenacle , also known as the "Upper Room", is the term used for the site of The Last Supper. The word is a derivative of the Latin word cena, which means dinner....
the
Last SupperThe Last Supper is the final meal that, according to Christian belief, Jesus shared with his Twelve Apostles in Jerusalem before his crucifixion. The Last Supper provides the scriptural basis for the Eucharist, also known as "communion" or "the Lord's Supper".The First Epistle to the Corinthians is...
took place (Mark 14:13).; or as the young man who ran away naked when Jesus was arrested (Mark 14:51-52).
The Coptic Church holds the tradition of identifying Mark the Evangelist with
John MarkJohn Mark is a character in the New Testament. According to William Lane, an "unbroken tradition" identifies him with Mark the Evangelist. John Mark is mentioned several times in the Acts of the Apostles...
, and holds that he was one of the Seventy Apostles sent out by Christ (Luke 10:1), as is confirmed by the list of Hippolytus. It also believes that Mark the Evangelist is the one who hosted the disciples in his house after the death of Jesus, into whose house the resurrected Jesus Christ came (John 20), and into whose house the
Holy SpiritHoly Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of the Hebrew Bible, but understood differently in the main Abrahamic religions.While the general concept of a "Spirit" that permeates the cosmos has been used in various religions Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of...
descended on the disciples at
PentecostPentecost is a prominent feast in the calendar of Ancient Israel celebrating the giving of the Law on Sinai, and also later in the Christian liturgical year commemorating the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples of Christ after the Resurrection of Jesus...
.
Mark is also believed to be one of the servants at the
Marriage at CanaIn Christianity, the transformation of water into wine at the Marriage at Cana or Wedding at Cana is the first miracle of Jesus in the Gospel of John....
who poured out the water that Jesus turned to wine (John 2:1-11), These traditions have no solid proof neither from the
New TestamentThe New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
nor from Church history.
According to the Coptic church, Saint Mark was born in
CyreneCyrene was an ancient Greek colony and then a Roman city in present-day Shahhat, Libya, the oldest and most important of the five Greek cities in the region. It gave eastern Libya the classical name Cyrenaica that it has retained to modern times.Cyrene lies in a lush valley in the Jebel Akhdar...
, a city in the Pentapolis of North Africa (now
LibyaLibya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
). This tradition adds that he returned to Pentapolis later in life, after being sent by Saint Paul to
ColossaeColossae or Colosse , was an ancient city of Phrygia, on the Lycus, which is a tributary of the Maeander River. It was situated about 12 miles South East of Laodicea, and near the great road from Ephesus to the Euphrates...
(Colossians 4:10;
PhilemonPaul's Epistle to Philemon, usually referred to simply as Philemon, is a prison letter to Philemon from Paul of Tarsus. Philemon was a leader in the Colossian church. This letter, which is one of the books of the New Testament, deals with forgiveness.Philemon was a wealthy Christian of the house...
24; these actually refer to
Mark the Cousin of BarnabasMark the Cousin of Barnabas is a character in the New Testament. He is usually identified with John Mark , although Hippolytus of Rome thought them to be separate people...
), and serving with him in Rome (2 Tim 4:11); from Pentapolis he made his way to
AlexandriaAlexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
. When Mark returned to Alexandria, the pagans of the city resented his efforts to turn the Alexandrians away from the worship of their traditional gods. In AD 68 they placed a rope around his neck and dragged him through the streets until he was dead.
Fate of his remains
In 828, relics believed to be the body of St. Mark were stolen from
AlexandriaAlexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
by two Venetian merchants and taken to
VeniceVenice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, where the
ByzantineByzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
Theodore of AmaseaSee also Theodore StratelatesSaint Theodore of Amasea is one of the two saints called Theodore who are venerated as Warrior Saints and Great Martyrs in the Eastern Orthodox Church. He is also known as Theodore Tiro...
had previously been the
patron saintA patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person...
. A
basilicaThe Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...
was built there to house the relics.
A
mosaicMosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. It may be a technique of decorative art, an aspect of interior decoration, or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral...
in
St Mark's BasilicaThe Patriarchal Cathedral Basilica of Saint Mark is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Venice, northern Italy. It is the most famous of the city's churches and one of the best known examples of Byzantine architecture...
,
VeniceVenice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
depicts sailors covering the relics with a layer of
porkPork is the culinary name for meat from the domestic pig , which is eaten in many countries. It is one of the most commonly consumed meats worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BC....
. Since
MuslimA Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
s are not allowed to touch pork, this action was done to prevent Muslim intervention in the relics removal.
Copts believe that the head of the saint remained in Alexandria. Every year, on the 30th day of the month of
PaopiPaopi , also known as Baba, is the second month of the Coptic calendar. It lies between October 11 and November 9 of the Gregorian calendar...
, the Coptic Orthodox Church celebrates the commemoration of the consecration of the church of St. Mark, and the appearance of the head of the saint in the city of Alexandria. This takes place inside
St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in AlexandriaSaint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in Alexandria is the historical seat of the Pope of Alexandria, the head of the Coptic Orthodox Church.-Beginning:The cathedral is said to stand on the site of the church founded by St. Mark the Evangelist in 60 AD.St...
, where the saint's head is preserved.
The
Eastern Orthodox ChurchThe Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
celebrates his-Local observances:In Tresnuraghes, a small village in the Sardinian region of Italy holds a traditional Sardinian feast, the most important one, which is a time of excess consumption that helps solidify the social community. Local shepherd families in this predominantly pastoral community offer...
feast day on April 25.
In 1063, during the construction of a
new basilica in VeniceThe Patriarchal Cathedral Basilica of Saint Mark is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Venice, northern Italy. It is the most famous of the city's churches and one of the best known examples of Byzantine architecture...
, St. Mark's relics could not be found. However, according to tradition, in 1094 the saint himself revealed the location of his remains by extending an arm from a pillar. The newfound remains were placed in a sarcophagus in the basilica.
In June 1968,
Pope Cyril VI of AlexandriaFather Mina became Pope of Alexandria on 10 May 1959 . In accordance with the old Coptic church tradition, Pope Cyril VI was the only monk in the 20th century to be chosen for papacy without having being a bishop /Metropolitan first...
sent an official delegation to Rome to receive a relic of St. Mark from
Pope Paul VIPaul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
. The delegation consisted of ten
metropolitanIn Christian churches with episcopal polity, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan, pertains to the diocesan bishop or archbishop of a metropolis; that is, the chief city of a historical Roman province, ecclesiastical province, or regional capital.Before the establishment of...
s and bishops, seven of whom were Coptic and three Ethiopian, and three prominent Coptic lay leaders.
The relic was said to be a small piece of bone that had been given to the Roman pope by Giovanni Cardinal Urbani, Patriarch of Venice. Pope Paul, in an address to the delegation, said that the rest of the relics of the saint remained in Venice.
The delegation received the relic on June 22, 1968. The next day, the delegation celebrated a pontifical liturgy in the Church of Saint Athanasius the Apostolic in Rome. The metropolitans, bishops, and priests of the delegation all served in the liturgy. Members of the Roman papal delegation, Copts who lived in Rome, newspaper and news agency reporters, and many foreign dignitaries attended the liturgy.
See also
- Feast of Saint Mark
-Local observances:In Tresnuraghes, a small village in the Sardinian region of Italy holds a traditional Sardinian feast, the most important one, which is a time of excess consumption that helps solidify the social community. Local shepherd families in this predominantly pastoral community offer...
- Gospel of John
The Gospel According to John , commonly referred to as the Gospel of John or simply John, and often referred to in New Testament scholarship as the Fourth Gospel, is an account of the public ministry of Jesus...
- Gospel of Luke
The Gospel According to Luke , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Luke or simply Luke, is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels. This synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. It details his story from the events of his birth to his Ascension.The...
- Gospel of Mark
The Gospel According to Mark , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Mark or simply Mark, is the second book of the New Testament. This canonical account of the life of Jesus of Nazareth is one of the three synoptic gospels. It was thought to be an epitome, which accounts for its place as the second...
- Gospel of Matthew
The Gospel According to Matthew is one of the four canonical gospels, one of the three synoptic gospels, and the first book of the New Testament. It tells of the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth...
- John the Evangelist
Saint John the Evangelist is the conventional name for the author of the Gospel of John...
- Luke the Evangelist
Luke the Evangelist was an Early Christian writer whom Church Fathers such as Jerome and Eusebius said was the author of the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles...
- Matthew the Evangelist
Matthew the Evangelist was, according to the Bible, one of the twelve Apostles of Jesus and one of the four Evangelists.-Identity:...
External links