<\/p>\n
Today, Christians celebrate the legacy of St. Mark the But most Christians don’t realize that Mark’s story does not Of Mark’s many accomplishments, ancient tradition claims that In many ways, Mark is an appealing figure for contemporary Today, Christians celebrate the legacy of St. Mark the Evangelist. Mark is mostly remembered as the traditional author of the Gospel of Mark, the earliest gospel in the New Testament–a breathless story of Jesus as a teller of tales and a miracle-working healer who is crucified by the Romans, and whose identity as “the Son…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":66,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,3,8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-christianity","category-history-and-theology","category-saints"],"yoast_head":"\n
\nEvangelist. <\/span>Mark is mostly
\nremembered as the traditional author of the Gospel of Mark, the earliest gospel
\nin the New Testament–a breathless story of Jesus as a teller of
\ntales and a miracle-working healer who is crucified by the Romans, and whose
\nidentity as “the Son of Man” is a secret to all except those who have some
\nspiritual understanding of his acts.
\n<\/span>Mark witnesses to the so-called “messianic secret,” the hidden purpose of God’s
\nson who suffers for the sake of the world.<\/p>\n
\nend with the writing of his gospel.
\n<\/span>Indeed, Mark may well have traveled as a missionary with both St. Paul
\nand St. Peter at different times after the death of Jesus. <\/span>Eventually, he went to Egypt where he
\nis credited with establishing the Church of Alexandria, one of the most
\ninfluential of the ancient Christian churches (today known as the Coptic
\nOrthodox Church). <\/span>As such, Mark
\nbecame the first bishop of Africa and one of the founders of African
\nChristianity. <\/span><\/p>\n
\nhe started the Catechetical School of Alexandria, a “wisdom academy” that
\ninstructed students in a way of life based in Christian philosophy, sacred
\ntexts, prayer, and spiritual practices.
\n<\/span>The Catechetical School was the first Christian university where early
\nfollowers of Jesus explored the connections between their belief in the
\nsuffering God with Alexandria’s cosmopolitan intellectual culture and religious
\npluralism. <\/span>As such, these early
\nbelievers were marked by their faithfulness and their love of learning. <\/span>Eventually, the school would develop an
\napproach to the Bible called “allegorical reading” that taught Christians to go
\nbeyond a literal understanding of scripture to explore the deeper “spiritual”
\nmeanings of holy texts. <\/span><\/p>\n
\nChristians–his story of Jesus is quick and to the point, a mystery that lets
\nits readers in on a divine secret; he was a person who understood the power of
\nfaith and questions, of belief and intellectual endeavor; and he established a
\nvibrant Christian community in a pluralistic city. <\/span>More than leaving us a book, he left us a way of wisdom to
\nbe emulated in the modern world. <\/span><\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"