The Gospel of Mark: A Liturgical Reading - Paperback

by Charles A. Bobertz (Author)

How Baptism and the Eucharist Shaped Early Christian Understandings of Jesus

Long before the Gospel writers put pen to papyrus, the earliest Christians participated in the powerful rituals of baptism and the Lord's Supper, which fundamentally shaped their understanding of God, Christ, and the world in which they lived. In this volume, a respected biblical scholar and teacher explores how cultural anthropology and ritual studies elucidate ancient texts. Charles Bobertz offers a liturgical reading of the Gospel of Mark, arguing that the Gospel is a narrative interpretation of early Christian ritual. This fresh, responsible, and creative proposal will benefit scholars, professors, and students. Its ecclesial and pastoral ramifications will also be of interest to church leaders and pastors.

Back Jacket

All reconstructions of the Markan community are conjectural. Presented as a commentary on the Second Gospel, Professor Bobertz's proposal adopts a liturgical attitude toward diverse social pressures exerted upon Christian readers in the apostolic age. His argument is closely reasoned, well researched, jargon-free, clear, and resolute. Those appreciative of Mark's literary artistry will find in Bobertz's interpretation a stimulus for the continued study of 'a story of deep symbolism and ritual complexity.'
--C. Clifton Black, Princeton Theological Seminary

"Bobertz takes the bold but necessary step of restoring Mark's Gospel to its original context--not just to the first century or to some ancient Christian author or literary genre, but to the earliest Christian communities and gatherings, formed in the ritual crucible of baptism and Eucharist. This is not merely a 'liturgical' reading in any narrow sense, but a genuinely contextual one, which not only bears new insights into the ancient origin and setting of the Gospel, but offers modern readers fresh insight into its relevance for them as members of baptized and eucharistic communities."
--Andrew McGowan, Yale Divinity School

"In an exhilarating journey through Mark's Gospel, Bobertz shows how the evangelist drew continually upon the language and practices of baptism and Eucharist. Mark's overarching purpose in doing so, Bobertz contends, was to resolve discord over Gentiles' presence at the Lord's Table by showing that through Jesus's life, passion, and resurrection (in which Christians participate through the liturgy) God created a profoundly inclusive church. Bobertz's demonstration that Mark's Jesus--and his followers!--move through ordinary time yet also transcend it will fire imaginations and raise appreciation for Mark's gifts as narrator and for the power of Christian liturgy."
--Susan R. Garrett, Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary

"Why hasn't anyone done this before? If we know that Mark and our other narrative Gospels were performed in ritualized settings, especially the Christian communal meal, then why not read them as though they meant something specific in those settings? Bobertz's reading of the Gospel of Mark is an interpretive and methodological breakthrough. With this book a new discussion of the Gospels begins: When early Christians gathered to eat the Lord's Supper or to baptize newcomers, how did these narratives set the mood and answer the questions, Who are we? and Why are we together like this?"
--Stephen J. Patterson, Willamette University

Author Biography

Charles A. Bobertz (PhD, Yale University) is professor of theology at St. John's University in Collegeville, Minnesota, and the author of numerous articles. He previously taught at Loyola College in Maryland.