Scholars almost always begin the quest for the historical Jesus with Mark, the oldest, shortest, and most lucid canonical gospel. It was written circa 69 CE and stands alone in antiquity as a literary marvel. Mark’s poor command of Greek suggests that it was not only his second language but also that he identifies with his intended audience—poor people.
His tragedy centers rural peasants, farmers, shepherds, and fisherman while kings, emperors, and priests are mocked. Far from some heavenly tale of salvation, Mark spends the majority of his short story detailing the daily reality of political oppression, economic exploitation, chronic illness, systemic violence, poverty, and imperial injustice on the middling class. Seriously, read it again and notice how many times “the masses” show up at center stage wanting Jesus to do something about their fate. In their book Mark as Story: An Introduction to the Narrative of a Gospel, David Rhoades, Joanna Dewey, and Donald Michie remark:
The narrative moves along quickly, and is a lively representation of action, with little summary. The narrator "shows" the action directly, seldom talking about it indirectly. Episodes are usually brief, the scene changes often, and minor characters appear and then quickly disappear. The reader is drawn quickly into the story by means of this fast-paced, dramatic movement. The brevity of style and rapidity of motion give the narrative a tone of urgency.
Mark’s story is so unique, he even invented a new literary genre called the gospel (“euangelion”). Taken from the Roman Empire to announce news of political victory, Mark co-opts this imperial word to proclaim the coming Kingdom of God and its victory over the powers that be. According to theologian and activist Ched Myers:
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