Is the Message of the Bible Fact or Fairy Tale? Part 2: The Gospel of Mark

The gospel of Mark is considered the earliest of the gospels by conservative and liberal scholars alike. Scholars date Mark’s gospel between the late 50’s and the early 70’s A.D., or between 25 and 40 years after the events recorded. Given that the events in question occurred some time between 30 and 33 A.D., did sufficient time pass before the writing of Mark’s gospel for the central core of historical truth to become corrupted? In other words, was this enough time for a legendary supernatural Jesus to emerge that was substantially different from the actual historical Jesus?

From reading Ima Dowder’s past articles, I can tell that she and I share a passion for the Chicago Bears. Almost a quarter of a century ago, The Bears crushed the New England Patriots 46-10 in the Super Bowl. I can still name many of the players on that team. I remember watching the game, soaking in every play, and I am sure Dowder can as well. How would Dowder respond if a columnist for a New England newspaper printed a reconstruction of the event which described the Bears losing by a field goal in overtime? I’m sure that she would be in the very next issue of her paper with a rebuttal! Not only that, but legions of Bears fans, including those who were at the game and those who watched it on television, would be lighting up the talk show telephones and the internet with the real story.

The same could be said of the Bears championship almost a half century ago. Any Bears fan between the ages of sixty and eighty would rise up in indignation at an attempt to revise that story. I remember listening to that game on the radio as the Bears outlasted the New York Giants 14-10. On a more serious note, what about the Holocaust almost three quarters of a century ago? Holocaust deniers have come and gone, but they have been unsuccessful in making their revisions stick precisely because those who were there and know the truth have been relentless in defending it. Movies that include the Holocaust as their theme, like "Schindler's List," "Sophie's Choice," and, more recently, "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas," keep the historical reality of this event impressed vividly on our souls and in our social conscience.

My point is that a generation or two is simply not enough time for a story to develop that sufficiently alters the core truths of a historical event, and most professional historians and textual critics would concur. A peripheral detail here or there may become obscure or debatable, but the central reality remains unaltered. During the years between the death of Jesus and the gospels, there were many people who were very hostile to the emerging faith and would have been more than willing to debunk and derail it. But they couldn’t, and they didn’t. The best explanation for why they were unsuccessful is that the story was true. It would have been highly unlikely for the legend of a supernatural Jesus to survive in such a hostile environment if it were not. Too many people would have known better.
 
But what about the gospel writer himself? Might his own ideological commitments and personal desires have clouded his perception and provoked him to fudge the facts despite these strong social controls? Does Mark's gospel pass the critical tests of historical reliability? We will discuss this in our next issue. 

Bookmark the Christian Apologetics Blog or subscribe to the Christian Apologetics Blog by email.

Subscribers, visit the Christian Apologetics Blog to read previous articles and comments and to view Christian apologetics resources recommended for specific Christian apologetics topics.

For information on current issues in bioethics, visit www.cedarethics.org.

 Blessings,

Arnie Gentile

Find Christian Apologetics resources at the Christian Apologetics Bookshop.


 

                   

              
                 

Posted by Arnie Gentile at 8/29/2009 9:00 PM
Categories: The Bible
Tags: Christian Apologetics
 

What did you think of this article?




Trackbacks
Trackback specific URL for this post
  • No trackbacks exist for this post.
Comments
  • No comments exist for this post.
Leave a comment

Submitted comments are subject to moderation before being displayed.

 Name

 Email (will not be published)

 Website

Your comment is 0 characters limited to 3000 characters.