Seminary Assignment on Discipleship in Mark's Gospel

 
 
From the Cross of Christ Celebrated Upon the Altar Flows the Blue Print of Authentic Discipleship
​One of the major themes of Mark’s Gospel is discipleship. The scholarship of Donald Senior in his article The Passion of Jesus in the Gospel of Mark is quite captivating and enlightening in terms of the importance of this theme of discipleship in Mark’s Gospel. The focus of this paper will be therefore an examination of what Mark’s gospel has to say about discipleship for the first century church as well as its implications for the Church in the twenty-first century.
​The call to follow Jesus is a pursuit, which has both rewards and demands interwoven in its tapestry of faith. Every period of Christian history has known its fair share of difficulties and persecutions. Jesus even says in one of the Gospels: “no servant is greater than his master; if they persecuted me then they will also persecute you.” Scholars maintain that the community to which Mark was writing had been experiencing its own persecutions. It is these persecutions that gave rise to Mark’s passion narrative and the importance of such narrative within his Gospel proclamation. “The Gospel’s focus on the passion, as well as its explicit references to persecution, are good reasons to believe that Mark’s community had already experienced the cost of discipleship, probably under the persecution of Nero at Rome. Such persecution produced courageous martyrs but also led to apostasy and desertion as many Christians sagged under the torment and pressures brought to bear on the community.” (Senior, p.104) From the passion narrative of Mark’s Gospel therefore scholars have drawn forth from the text, Mark’s good news proclamation and in a certain sense his advice and reminder to any Christian community that suffers persecution as well as the division of some of its members who relapse in faith during such time. Donald Senior points out: “If such failures had been experienced by Mark’s church then one can also guess that after the heat of persecution had abated, the issue of reconciliation with those who had abandoned the community but now were drifting back would be painful. Could reconciliation be denied to fallen disciples when such a passion story was proclaimed? Along with the example of courage and fidelity provided by the woman who anointed Jesus, the flight of the disciples and the denial of Peter would, paradoxically, become ‘gospel’, that is, good news for a Christian community that knew ‘failures’ as well as heroes.” (p. 105)  
​Just as in the first century Church of Rome to which Mark addressed his proclamation of good news the same message is of great importance to the Universal Church of Rome in our own day and age. Mark’s passion narrative is still relevant some twenty centuries later. Mark’s passion narrative paints us a picture of discipleship that has under gone the trials and temptations of persecution and Mark uses this portrait to encourage disciples who daily come to a greater recognition of their own weakness in following Christ and their dependence upon him to faithfully live out such an exalted calling. The first century Church of Rome would have found great encouragement in knowing that not even the original twelve whom Jesus had called to be his right hand men were impervious to such weakness and failure in meeting the demands of discipleship. Mark’s message would have also have been received by those Christians who did not relapse in the face of persecution to remember to welcome back with a reconciliatory embrace those who had fallen knowing that even Christ forgave the original band of disciples when they gave into weakness of faith. The main point of Mark’s passion narrative would then have been twofold in its treatment of discipleship. First, if the very men Christ chose to be his immediate followers and the ones to whom he entrusted his Church had failed in discipleship in the face of persecution then the Church to whom Mark was writing would also have to recognize their own short comings with a humble disposition which relies upon the grace of Jesus to make it through. Second, discipleship is characterized by weakness and failures but yet Christ is merciful and we therefore should follow Christ’s example in treating our brothers and sisters with mercy when they fall prey to temptations.
​Donald Senior points out many of the traits of discipleship that Mark underscores in his passion narrative. Let us turn our attention to these traits. Toward the very beginning of his passion narrative, Mark introduces the woman who anointed Jesus with an alabaster jar of oil. Apparently for Mark, this woman serves as an example of “genuine discipleship” because “she recognizes that Jesus’ way will lead to the Cross.” (Senior, p.47) “The woman’s recognition of Jesus’ approaching death and her graceful and lavishly generous response define authentic discipleship for Mark.” (Senior, p.47) Authentic discipleship recognizes the role of the Cross in the mission of Jesus and subsequently in the lives and mission of those who would be his disciples. In other words, it could be said when speaking about discipleship that there is no crown without the cross. By situating the theme of discipleship so heavily within the passion narrative, Mark is emphasizing the role of the cross in the life of the disciple. It is an unavoidable aspect of Christian discipleship and ministry. This is the path that Jesus chose to fulfill his ministry of service and salvation for the world. The observant disciple should recognize this path and do all in their power to embrace it when called to it by the demands of discipleship. At the same time there is the hope of forgiveness for those who fall short in meeting those demands even though it should be the bar for which they should reach.
​Another characteristic of discipleship, which Mark invites his community to observe and appropriate is seen “at the very beginning of the passion story, as opposition and treachery mount against Jesus, Mark lifts up an example of authentic discipleship. Not one of the twelve but a woman, whom the tradition has not even graced with a name, one shunted aside in a patriarchal culture, becomes the paradigm. She is a paradoxical reminder to the community that outsiders often respond with far greater insight and generosity than the insiders oblivious to the presence of grace” (Senior, p.48) This trait of discipleship reminds the followers of Christ that they should be observant of the signs of the times as well as open to what others may have to offer them in terms of penetrating the mystery of God. In a sense this trait in modern terms could be seen as the openness to the ecumenical spirit in which we humbly listen to what God may be saying through those who are not explicitly a member of our particular community.
​In his passion narrative Mark really draws forth the Eucharistic element of discipleship in terms of what the Vatican Council II said about the Eucharist, namely, that it is both the source and summit of the whole Christian life. We are empowered for the work of ministry through our communion with Christ whose total sacrifice of self on the cross makes possible the living out of the demands of discipleship with courage and fidelity. Donald Senior describes the importance of Eucharistic terminology for Mark’s development of discipleship in his gospel. Senior points to the meal in which Jesus blesses, breaks and distributes both the bread and the wine by saying that “the solemn and theologically rich moment of the meal is surrounded by two scenes where discipleship failure is again Mark’s poignant theme. The institution account with its stress on the deep bond between Jesus and his followers and Jesus’ ultimate triumph over death is a strong counterpoint to the surrounding scenes which brood over discipleship weakness and failure.” (Senior, p.49) Though this account of the Eucharistic meal is sandwiched by scenes of discipleship failure this meal serves then to heighten the importance of relying upon Christ in terms of the power of his death and the communion that results with him from it in the living out of faithful discipleship. As disciples of Christ undertake the demands of living the Gospel and are surrounded by their own weakness and the weakness of those around them they are reminded of the need to feast on the food that the Lord provides for finishing the race and for fighting the good fight. Donald Senior points out that throughout Mark’s gospel, Mark has the tendency of highlighting certain things of importance by sandwiching them between things which are almost the exact opposite of what is being highlighted as important. For example, Senior points out how Mark brackets the Eucharistic meal with the declaration of betrayal and denial by the Disciples of Christ. For Mark, “the predictions of desertion and denial veer sharply from the stress on the bond between master and disciple so solemnly celebrated” in the Passover/Eucharistic meal. (Senior, p.62) This point shows Mark’s desire to encourage the community to recognize in their Eucharistic community meal the strength and nourishment that they will need in order to remain faithful disciples to the bond of deep friendship that they have with Christ through their communion.
​In terms of Mark’s emphasis on the importance of the Eucharistic meal for the community of disciples it should also be noted that Mark sees in the Eucharistic meal not only a feast of friendship but also the commission from Jesus to continue his own mission of reaching out to all peoples in the hope of calling them forward to this same feast. Donald Senior points out the connection between the Eucharistic meal and the “meaning of the feeding stories as action summaries of Jesus’ entire mission to Israel and to the nations.” (Senior, p.58) Senior also points out that in Mark’s Gospel the theme of bread that is blessed and broken is not limited to being “a sign of Jesus’ inclusive mission but rather it is also his body, his very self, an offering of bread-declared-body to the disciples; a vivid symbol of Jesus’ death for others.” (Senior, p.58) It has been mentioned earlier that for Mark authentic discipleship involves being able to recognize Jesus’ mission as involving the way of the Cross. Not only does it involve recognizing the way of the Cross for Jesus, however, but also the way of the Cross for the community of disciples. Senior points this out by claiming that “the passion story is not simply about the passion of Jesus, but the passion the community experiences in its living out of the Gospel in the world.” (p.63) He also points out that the “breaking of the loaves for the crowds expressed the ultimate meaning of Jesus’ messianic work; the word at the meal affirms that Jesus’ death is the final act of that mission, self-donation ‘for the many’.” (p.59)  
​The message of discipleship, which Mark was trying to convey to his community of faith in Rome during the first century, has much to teach us, the Church of Rome, in the twenty first century. As Christians in this period of history we easily find ourselves preoccupied with many of the same temptations and problems that faced the early Church. The particular struggles may have had different disguises but in essence the struggles are still the same. In today’s Church we still struggle with weakness in living up to the demands of the Gospel and discipleship. We still struggle with persecution, even though it may not necessarily involve the threat of a person’s life. It may involve emotional, mental, societal, spiritual, verbal persecution. We also find ourselves struggling with the temptation to cut others off from communion when they lapse into sin, especially when it is publicized. There are many disciples who having felt the weight of their own sin have left the table of communion. Like Mark’s community we also fall into the temptation of having an ‘insider/outsider’ mentality, thereby shutting ourselves off from what others can teach us.
​What does Mark’s treatment of discipleship have to offer us? Most importantly, I think that Mark’s emphasis on the Eucharistic meal is the prime starting place for discovering the blueprints of discipleship. Mark’s development of the imagery of bread in both of the miraculous feeding stories and their culmination and explanation in the Passover/Eucharistic meal are essential to a clear sense of discipleship. This imagery shows forth the universal outreach of Jesus’ mission, which will ultimately be finalized on the cross at Calvary. It is in this feast of friendship with Christ that the disciple will find the necessary strength to live the demands of discipleship as well as forgiveness for those times when they fail in the process. Mark, in his passion narrative has made it quite clear to us that discipleship is about picking up one’s cross and following Christ. This task of picking up one’s cross is in imitation of Christ’s gift of self for the life of the world. The call of discipleship that we embark upon should always keep this in mind. Christian discipleship involves the cross, and its mission is strengthened by Christ’s cross made present in the love feast of the Eucharist which in turns spurs on his disciples in the pursuit of making disciples of all nations. Discipleship culminates in the Cross of Christ. For the faithful discipleship, the Cross is the source of entry into communion with God and it is the summit in terms of being the place from which disciples draw the much needed strength and forgiveness they need to fulfill the task at hand.
​In conclusion, discipleship is an awesome task and calling. Its demands are great and yet for the faithfully attentive disciple the rewards are also quite great. Disciples must realize that their task will at times be characterized by their own weaknesses and failures. They are to draw their strength from communion with Christ in the Eucharistic/Passover meal. It is also from the Eucharist that the forgiveness of their sins is possible because it is the representation of the death of Christ. It is also from the Eucharist and from contemplation upon the Eucharist that the community of faith and the disciple in particular discerns more clearly and articulately their specific participation in the mission of Christ. Just as Mark painted his picture of discipleship in terms of the passion of Christ may we who follow Christ in the twenty first century also discover our particular calling through our reflection upon the same redemptive suffering of Christ.