Reading Mark

A few weeks ago, Jessica and I were talking about a professor at the seminary, Dr. Dongell, a guy we both really like. She took a class from him that I took, a study on the Gospel of Mark. We had it some years apart, and he still starts it off the same way: by having you read the gospel out loud. We both remarked how much we liked the assignment, and then at about the same time said, “Wouldn’t it be neat if we read it out loud with a group of people?” The assignment was to do it by yourself, to hear it. But we began wondering what would happen to a group of people if we were formed by the Word? Our goal was simply to listen. Not to have anything to say.

So Saturday, we did it. We cooked breakfast Saturday morning and then we read Mark. It was good to have some fellowship in the kitchen and around the table, and then to read. It was me, Jessica, Meg, Christy, and Christopher. It was wonderful to hear each other’s voices. It was wonderful to read through the gospel without stopping, to catch its immediacy, its entirety.

It took about an hour and a half to read it. But it felt (at least to me) like it went fast.

I had a couple of “feelings” during the reading. Somewhere around chapter 6, I was captivated by the sense of “I believe this?” “I believe this?” Finally, “I believe this!”

When Jesus tells the disciples that one of them will betray Him, He immediately broke the bread, taught them that it was His body and gave it to them. I thought, “He has just spoken of being betrayed and then He just gives Himself away. I betrayed Him, and yet He has given Himself to me.” It was one of the most powerful moments I have had in a long time.

At first, Christy knew she had a lot of studying to do, and thought she would not stay for it all. But she could not let it go. Christopher is a boy who is going through a rough time, and I was very proud that he could sit through it. When we were done Meg said she was not leaving until I told her when we were going to do it again.