New
Testament scholar Donald Juel tells the story of a young seminary student who
developed such a deep passion for Mark’s gospel that the student decided to
develop a dramatic monologue where he would recite the entire narrative account. The young man labored to develop a
captivating performance that would immerse an audience into the world of Mark
and his faith community. The problem
came, however, when he reached the ending.
Deciding to take the traditional ending of 16:8, the young man found it
awkward to conclude with the women cowering in fear. However, he pressed on and recited the final
words with great intensity. Then the
moment came. What to say next? Juel records that the student shuffled his
feet for a moment, finally announcing, “Amen!”
The audience paused for a moment and offered a thunderous applause. Yet, when the young man critiqued his
performance, he thought that he had cheated the ending. When he was asked to perform the monologue
again, the young man delivered it with the same pristine ability as
before. However, when he came to the
ending, he simply recited the text of 16:1-8, and walked off the stage. There was little applause following this
performance. Yet, as the audience left
the sanctuary, a conversation regarding the meaning of this awkward ending
buzzed among those who were present.[1]
To
be honest, the ending of Mark is nothing short of a head-scratcher. I have been studying Mark’s gospel for a
number of years, preaching and writing on it whenever I can. However there is something about this ending
that always leaves me incomplete. If we
accept the long-standing tradition that the gospel ends at v. 8 (and I think
that we should), we find a group of women hiding in an undisclosed room
somewhere terrified about what they have seen and heard, unsure of what to do
next. They have been to the tomb. They have heard the proclamation that Jesus
is not there. They have been given a
message. And. . .they huddle together in
fear. Wait. . .that’s the ending?
Some
have offered some alternatives. Some
have suggested that the original ending has been lost to us, arguing that v.
9-20 was added on to make up for the awkwardness of v. 8. Some have suggested that Mark was unable to
finish his gospel account. Perhaps he
had been called away on a pastoral visit and the letter was mailed off by his
secretary without his approval. Perhaps
he had been arrested and executed by the Romans. The reason for these explanations is because
the literal reading of v. 8 goes something like this: “They went out and fled
from the tomb; terror and amazement had overtaken them; they said nothing to
anyone for. . .” Now there are some
grammatical differences between Greek and English, however it still sounds like
a poor way to end a sentence. Isn’t
there more? What is missing?
Well,
perhaps nothing is missing. Perhaps Mark
has left us the message that he purposefully intended to give us. Notice the scene with the young man. Here is a young man, dressed in white sitting at the right hand of Jesus’ tomb, who proclaims
that Jesus has risen from the dead. In
essence, he becomes the first true Christian missionary![2] “Do
not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look,
there is the place they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter
that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he
told you” (Mark 16:6-7). Yet the
women do not go. They do
not share the message. They hide in
fear of what might happen. However, what
if Mark is speaking more to his audience than simply telling a story? After all, where just the gospel narrative
begin? It begins in Galilee (Mark 1:14-15)! Mark encourages us to not simply dismiss this
as a poor ending but to go back to the beginning and re-read the story.[3] We now know the ending of the story;
therefore we will be more alert for Jesus’ signals of his identity. And we will be ready to proclaim with the
Roman soldier, “Truly this man was
God’s Son” (Mark 15:39)! “That’s the Son
of God, hanging there on the cross. I
know the end of the story. Death will
not contain him. And I choose to follow
him!” You know what, I think I like this
ending after all.
[1]Donald H. Juel, The Gospel of Mark, Interpreting
Biblical Texts (Nashville: Abingdon, 1999), 172.
[2]John R. Donahue
and Daniel J. Harrington, The Gospel of
Mark, Sacra Pagina 2 (Collegeville, MN: Michael Glazer Books/Liturgical
Press, 2002), 460.
[3]Thomas G. Long, “The
Word: Dangling Gospel,” Christian Century
123 (4 April 2006): 19.
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