Homily: Feast of St. Mark

Feast of St. Mark (Mark 16:15-20) “A Secondhand Account?”

We may have a theory of how the gospels were put together. We can surmise that there were two apostles named Matthew and John. We have two Gospels named Matthew and John. We might think that these two apostles wrote down their experiences as they followed Jesus around during his ministry. But the question could be asked, “Who were Mark and Luke?” They are not listed among the twelve.

If we think the gospels were just eyewitness accounts, we would be mistaken. None of the gospels were written by the twelve apostles. The first gospel was not written until more than thirty years after Jesus lived. This gospel was the Gospel of Mark which is the shortest of the four canonical gospels. If these were not eyewitness accounts, how were they compiled?

The gospels came to be in three stages. The first stage was the actual words and deeds of Jesus. People were there who saw what he did and listened to what he said but they were not writing it all down. Why? Because they thought the world was going to end soon and that Jesus would complete his mission in a short time. Then, all his followers would move with Jesus into eternal glory. But this was a mistaken notion. The mission continues to this day.

When the world did not end in a timely fashion the followers of Jesus started to think that something needed to be written about him. That is where people like St. Mark started their work. Mark was at the center of the Christian movement. His mother’s home was a place that was a Christian gathering place in Jerusalem. Mark traveled with St. Paul. He was a friend of St. Peter. He did not know Jesus personally, but he knew the oral tradition. The passing on of stories about Jesus was the second stage of Gospel writing.

Mark began to write things down. We believe that he quizzed Peter about Jesus and that is where he got his material for the gospel he wrote. He put the information into a story which became the first Gospel.

Reflection Questions:

1.    Did I ever think about how the gospels came to be written? Am I surprised they were not written right away?

2.   Were the other gospels written the same way? Why is John so different than the other gospels?

 Dear Parishioners,

             The donor book that was blessed on Sunday is now installed in the St. Damien Center. I thank Sandy Madison and Bobbie Vidmar for compiling the names of all those who needed to be thanked for their donations to our building projects.

            The donor book contains hundreds of names. This speaks of the generosity of the people of Sacred Heart. For generations to come the names will be read by those who follow us.

            Another good thing about the donor book is that names can be added. If anyone would like to donate so that we can retire the remaining debt it would be appreciated.

            May Our Lady pray for our divided world,

            Fr. Mark