Facsimile of the 1726 edition, printed by william pearson seven trumpet tunes on festive hymns, vol 1 h. Close reading and careful analysis show that mark borrowed extensively from the odyssey and the iliad and that he wanted his readers to recognize the homeric antecedents in mark s story of jesus. Homeric epics and the gospel of mark macdonalds seminal work, however, is the homeric epics and the gospel of mark. In the homeric epics and the gospel of mark, i proposed that the evangelist sought to embed traditions about jesus within a narrative that would present. Pdf the homeric epics and the gospel of mark semantic scholar. To call the iliad and the odyssey epics today can evoke two quite different sets of comparable works. Pdf austin clines interview with dennis macdonald michael.
It addresses a church that is the object of persecution following the great fire of rome. The hymns are homeric in the sense that they employ the same epic meterdactylic hexameteras the iliad and odyssey, use many similar formulas and are couched in the same dialect they were uncritically attributed to. Not until the development of modern critical new testament scholarship was the importance of mark recognized. Macdonald proposes a theory wherein the earliest books of the new testament were responses to the homeric epics, including the gospel of mark and the acts of the apostles. The methodology he pioneered is called mimesis criticism.
Macdonald discussing the homeric epics and the gospel of mark. From a paper read at the october 14, 2000 meeting of the chicago society for biblical research. Imitations of greek epic in mark and lukeacts, 2014 the homeric epics and the gospel of mark, 2000. Homeric epics and mark dennis mcdonalds the homeric epics and the gospel of mark 2000 is a book that was always guaranteed to upset orthodox christian theologians and biblical literalists and fundamentalists everywhere, since its main thesis held that the author of the first gospel used the iliad and the odyssey as literary.
Macdonalds seminal work, however, is the homeric epics and the gospel of mark. Close reading and careful analysis show that mark borrowed extensively from the odyssey and the iliad and that he wanted his readers to recognise the homeric. Dennis r macdonald does an excellent job in his book, the homeric epics and the gospel of mark. Macdonald, the homeric epics and the gospel of mark new haven, ct. Download the gospel of mark pdf ebook the gospel of mark the gospel of mark ebook author by william barclay the gospel. Oct 22, 2014 a lot of people i know would be horrified at the premise of the gospels and homer. Macdonald offers an entirely new view of the new testament gospel of mark. The gospel according to mark new revised standard version chapter 1 1 the beginning of the good news of jesus christ, the son of god. What is not often remembered, however, is that homers epics were the basic educational texts of everyone in the ancient world who could write greek and that their stories were widely known and often adapted and imitated by ancient writers. The homeric epics and the gospel of mark goodreads. Finding meaning in marks bad greek and distinctive style. Review of the homeric epics and the gospel of mark by dennis r. These studies in the gospel of mark have been compiled and written by rev. Then there was dennis macdonalds the homeric epics and the gospel of mark which alerted me to a pool of scholars who have been working on marks mimesis of classical in addition to hebrew texts, including specific scenes from the epics and classical greek tragedies.
Mark introduction commentary commentary critical and. The iliad is set during the trojan war, the tenyear siege of the city of troy by a coalition of greek kingdoms. The gospel of mark was the first of the four gospels to be written, and it was used by the authors of matthew and luke. Mark was composing a prose antiepic, macdonald says, presenting jesus as a suffering hero modeled after but far superior to traditional greek heroes. In the gospels and homer macdonald leads readers through homers iliad and odyssey, highlighting models that the authors of the gospel of mark and lukeacts may have imitated for their. The homeric epics and the gospel of mark christian research. If evidence can be shown that mark copied from homer, what does this mean. Pdf the gospel of mark 2018 edition gary everett, mdiv dmin.
The homeric epic and the gospel of mark the journal. Feb 23, 2017 the homeric epics vs the gospel of mark rishasha. Macdonald argues that the gospel writers borrowed from established literary sources to create stories about jesus that readers of the day would find convincing. That the second gospel was written by mark is universally agreed, though by what mark, not so. Pdf the homeric epics and the gospel of mark semantic. Myth in germany documents how thinkers as disparate as jacob grimm, friedrich wilhelm schelling, david friedrich strauss, georg friedrich creuzer, christian hermann. Homeric scholarship is the study of any homeric topic, especially the two large surviving epics, the iliad and odyssey. Homeric epics were written in 762 bce, give or take, new. Dennis macdonald argued in the homeric epics and the gospel of mark that the markan emphasis on maritime voyages seen in jesus crisscrossing of the sea of galilee was an intentional parallel to the seatraveling in the odyssey.
The book concludes with a discussion of the profound significance of this new reading of mark for understanding the gospels and early christianity. Mark was composing a prose antiepic, macdonald says, presenting jesus as a. Daniel hill, phd, pastor of southwood bible church of tulsa, oklahoma. Macdonald claremont school of theology offers in the homeric epics and the gospel of mark a daring proposal to explain the style and origins of the gospel of mark. Reading the gospel book of mark is a great place to take your next steps in following jesus. Evelynwhite published by the loeb classical library in 1914.
The homeric epics and the gospel of mark christian. Throughout most of antiquity it was disparaged by commentators, who held that it was merely a condensed version of matthew. The author of the earliest gospel was not writing history, nor was he merely. In later works, he posits the acts of the apostles, the gospel of mark, and gospel of luke merged two. Austen, jane 2951 dickens, charles 2914 doyle, arthur conan 2538 twain, mark 2127 poe, edgar allan 1803 wilde, oscar 1687. Dennis macdonald in the homeric epics and the gospel of mark says it may be one of many connections between the homeric epics and the gospel of mark. In conclusion, there is little reason, internally or externally to doubt the traditional identification of mark, the companion of peter, as the author of the gospel that bears his name. He says that priam, the father of hector claims his sons body and in the gospel, a joseph is claiming the body of his son. Finally, critics of mimesis criticism complain that the proposed imitation of classical greek poetry in mark are more extensive than what one finds in most books mimetic of the epics. Review by richard carrier of dennis macdonalds the homeric epics and the gospel of mark the following is the conclusion. The fourth gospel and euripides, 2017 the gospels and homer. The second, with equal justice, would view homeric poetry as one instance of a type of traditional oral narrative.
Download the gospel of mark pdf ebook the gospel of mark the gospel of mark ebook author by russell m. The overwhelming majority of parallels drawn in the homeric epics and the gospel of mark are the product of macdonalds vague generalizations, fertile imagination, and literary manipulations. This is an incredible book that must be read by everyone with an interest in christianity. Close reading and careful analysis show that mark borrowed extensively from the odyssey and the iliad and that he wanted his readers to recognise the homeric antecedents in mark s story of jesus. And, entire episodes in mark mirror homeric episodes, including stilling the sea, walking on water, feeding the multitudes, the triumphal entry, and gethsemane. Even if every argument that macdonald offers is valid, there is still a complex of material and arguments the pauline letters, for example that his thesis has no effect upon at all. Homer, the gospels, gullotta and mythicism humes apprentice. The great majority of critics take the writer to be john whose surname was mark, of whom we read in the acts, and who was sisters son to barnabas colossians 4. Macdonalds shocking thesis is that the gospel of mark is a deliberate and conscious anti epic, an inversion of the greek bible of homer s iliad and odyssey, which in a sense updates and judaizes the outdated heroic values presented by homer, in the figure of a new hero, jesus.
The santiaga cult in spain understood that james and john were christianized dioscuri homeric epics p. Buy the homeric epics and the gospel of mark by macdonald, dennis r. The canon of the bible 1999 larry taylors critique of chapter 3 of josh mcdowells evidence that demands a verdict on the christian canon. Devices developed for reading books online can store. The first grouping would put homer at the head of a western tradition of literary epic that runs from apollonius of rhodes through virgil, on to the renaissance and beyond. Finding meaning in marks bad greek and distinctive. It is the most concise gospel account with only 16 chapters. The gospels are not trustworthy historical documents. The main premise of this book is that the writers of the gospels are creators of fiction. The hymns are homeric in the sense that they employ the same epic meterdactylic hexameteras the iliad and odyssey, use many similar formulas and are couched in the same dialect. In the scheme envisioned here, the gospel of mark, emulating the homeric epics, may be understood as a transvaluative hypertext of the iliad and odyssey. It is significant that macdonald tells the reader early in his book that detecting and appreciating the parallels he draws requires patience. Why are homers epics and the gospel of mark so similar. After graduating from high school in scottsdale, arizona, dan hill served in the united.
The formation of the new testament canon richard carrier. The homeric hymns, 2nd edition harmonia sacra or divine hymns and dialogues. The author of the earliest gospel was not writing history, nor was he merely recording tradition, macdonald argues. In the homeric epics and the gospel of mark macdonald repeatedly points out that ancient people did see the homeric connections. This work claims that mark s gospel draws extensively from the homeric epics, especially the odyssey, and a couple of chapters from the illiad. This work claims that marks gospel draws extensively from the homeric epics, especially the odyssey, and a couple of chapters from the illiad.
This goes into more detail about the use of books, the nt and ot canon, apocrypha, the effects of the reformation, and most of all the modern rules and guidelines for defending canonicity. This is an essay inspired by groundbreaking discoveries made by the scholar dennis r. According to macdonald, the gospel of mark is a deliberate and conscious antiepic, an inversion of the greek bible of homers iliad and odyssey, which in a sense updates and judaizes the outdated heroic values presented by. Marks gospel is not an historical account of reallife characters. By macdonald, dennis r the new testament and greek literature. All you need to do is download an ebook in pdf or any other format and enjoy reading in any place. Macdonald has developed the idea of mimesis criticism, the realization that many ancient authors appropriated language, metaphors, and even narrative structure in alignment with another influence. Achtemeier union theological seminary in virginia, richmond, va 23227 one of the more salutary developments in recent research on the nt has been the recovery of the awareness that its documents. Mark s aemulatio arises from a desire to provide a christian corrective to the pagan values exemplified in the epics 2. The homeric epics and the gospel of mark by dennis r. Marks aemulatio arises from a desire to provide a christian corrective to the pagan values exemplified in the epics 2. He has graciously provided his notes so that they can be made available by email and on the world wide web. Mark s gospel is not an historical account of reallife characters. The homeric epics and the gospel of mark adds another striking layer to the study of early christianity, one which further fleshes out the wide and complex cultural matrix from which the gospel tradition emerged.
The homeric epic and the gospel of mark the journal of. Macdonald, the homeric epics and the gospel of mark new haven. Dennis ronald macdonald born 1946 is the john wesley professor of new testament and christian origins at the claremont school of theology in california. A commentary on his apology for the cross grand rapids, mi. In mark jesus engages in both sea and land journeys. Close reading and careful analysis show that mark borrowed extensively from the odyssey and the iliad and that he wanted his readers to recognize the homeric antecedents in marks story of jesus. Dennis macdonald is the primary proponent of this view, and his argument has been that the gospel of mark was written as a conscious and deliberate imitation of the stories in the homeric epics. The cureforchristianity library ten tough problems in. Achtemeier union theological seminary in virginia, richmond, va 23227 one of the more salutary developments in recent research on the nt has been the recovery of the awareness that its documents were produced.
Dennis ronald macdonald born 1946 is the john wesley professor of new testament and. Review of an incredible new book that must be read by everyone with an interest in christianity. Macdonald is right to see the trips across the sea of galilee. Homeric epics and the gospel of mark yale university press. Introduction to the gospel of mark the gospel of mark is one of the four gospels canonized by the early church. The homeric epics and the gospel of mark dennis ronald. The odyssey is the first book produced by the greeks and is written hundreds of years before the new. It is significant that macdonald tells the reader early in his book that detecting and appreciating the parallels he draws requires patience, generosity, and above all, imagination 9. It is currently part of the academic discipline of classical studies. The goal was to give readers a familiar context to discover the superiority of christ and christianity over pagan gods and beliefs. Macdonalds homeric epics and the gospel of mark, a preface.
Jun 09, 2009 the overwhelming majority of parallels drawn in the homeric epics and the gospel of mark are the product of macdonalds vague generalizations, fertile imagination, and literary manipulations. I examine whether the gospel of mark copied from homers epics. Academic debates about the origins of the homeric epics ensued. A literary structural analysis of the gospel of mark paisley. Mark was written, not with history in mind, but rather homers epic the odyssey and thus constructed the life of jesus to mirror and in some cases succeed the trials of the heroic odysseus. Macdonalds shocking thesis is that the gospel of mark is a deliberate and conscious antiepic, an inversion of the greek bible of homers iliad and odyssey, which in a sense updates and judaizes the outdated heroic values presented by homer, in the figure of a new hero, jesus. The formation of the new testament canon 4 ments for the existence of a lost sourcetext called q which was used by matthew and luke to supplement their borrowing from mark, and this has been speculatively dated as early as the ad 50es. Top 100 ebooks yesterday top 100 authors yesterday top 100 ebooks last 7 days top 100 authors last 7 days top 100 ebooks last 30 days top 100 authors last 30 days.