Mark’s gospel, believed to be the earliest, can be interpreted as “rough around the edges”. In contrast to Matthew and Luke, in which the writers have sought to fill in gaps and narrativize, Mark does not gloss Jesus and his disciples. He depicts his disciples not as all-knowing and perfect followers; but rather in a tone of utter misunderstanding. Through journeying, traveling, living, and eating with Christ, they attempt to emulate his ways and pick up on his teachings, but lack the hindsight of the Markan author. Mark writes this gospel at a time right after the Jewish war in which Jewish population was devastated. They had expected an all-powerful Messiah to come and save them and deliver them from tragedy; they assumed the Jesus figure they had known previously was supposed to be the Messiah that intervened in this point and time. According to White, the “dominant view- here being parodied as a misunderstanding- assumed a connection with some form of a political eschatology” (278-279). Mark uses the disciples misunderstanding of Jesus’s character to teach and approach his audience in a way which reframed their mindset. Jesus was still a Savior who would usher in the Kingdom of God at the end of time, but his purpose was not to squash the Romans in the Jewish War. Jesus’s disciples in Mark parallel this misunderstanding; they expected Jesus to be a political power and restore the correct form of power on earth; but as Jesus tells John, the focus of humanity should be supporting one’s neighbor and preparing for the divine kingdom of heaven, not worrying about the ruling body on earth. Of all of the passages of understanding that Mark has, an important one that stands out is 8:33, where Jesus rebukes Peter because his mind is set on human things, not those of the divine. The disciples in general seek Jesus as an all-powerful savior, but often do not understand his teachings and miracles especially when it comes to specifically healing the marginalized. In all, the understanding of Christ’s divinity was to be that of personal understanding, not that of a forceful Roman emperor, hence Jesus’s telling his disciples not to tell of his miracles. This is an “out with the old, and in with the new” type of sweep that Mark tries to implement through Jesus.
The stories of Bartimaeus is that of a blind beggar who hears of Jesus, calling out his name and having faith in Jesus’s miracle powers. Jesus in turn heals Bartimaeus and does not “shush” him like many who ordered him to be quiet. Jesus here reaches out to a person on the margins of society, bringing them back into the community. Jesus has the power to heal his blindness; similar to the power Jesus has to heal the hardened hearts, or lack of faith the disciples suffer from. Mark depicts Jesus’s disciples as blind and misunderstanding at many points, and through this miracle Jesus highlights that through faith they will see the truth. Later on, an unnamed woman anoints Jesus with ointment (perfume in a sense); this has a dual meaning. Anointing is not only the sign of recognizing Jesus as the messiah and having faith, but also is a ritual as a preparation for burial. This is a sign of the woman’s faith in Jesus’s divinity. Jesus’s disciples are angry at the ‘waste’ of ointment by the woman; this is yet another misunderstanding that Jesus scolds them for. This woman has faith in Jesus, his divinity, his future; his disciples still do not understand. Despite being scolded, the woman continues to do what she is right; in the bigger picture, Mark alludes to that when Jesus’s followers are in a point of persecution, by continuing to do what is true to faith they will be able to align themselves with Christ’s teachings.
Within the parable of the sower, Jesus creates a metaphor for his spreading of the faith and the Word into the population. Some will understand, some will not. In my opinion, the twelve disciples would fall into the category of those who land on the rocky soil. At the beginning of Jesus’s ministry and for many individual teachings, the disciples rejoice and admire Jesus’s teachings (they believe and preach Christ’s message when it is easy and accessible). But when it comes to Jesus’s Passion, they fall back; Peter denies Christ, his disciples flee; Christ’s twelve disciples run away or hide when something comes to test their faith. On the other hand, marginalized believers such as the women who anoints Jesus and Bartimaeus “hear the word and accept” Jesus in full faith, despite their ailments or placement at the margins of society where they face adversity despite the presence of Jesus in their lives (Mark 4:20).
To conclude, discipleships for Mark is the act of someone seeking to understand Jesus’s teachings; it does not have to be a perfect emulation of Christ’s actions, but can be anyone who is willing to give up their life to follow Christ. This is in contrast from the original rules and regulations of Judaism, which had strict restrictions and requirements, whereas Jesus seeks to take in all aspects of society; especially those who are marginalized (physical disabled, sick, women, etc). In addition to this, Jesus’s followers must continue to have faith amongst adversity, and seek to understand Jesus’s teachings; giving up the old way and welcoming in a new understanding.