Nearly twenty years ago, I hopped into a cab with a friend
in Dublin and told the cabbie to take us to the Chester Beatty Library. He turned back in confusion and said, “Where?” I just assumed that anyone who lived in
Dublin, but especially a cab driver, would know about the world famous Chester
Beatty Library. This famous museum
houses perhaps the greatest collection of ancient and Biblical
manuscripts. Surely, this place is
familiar. But to my disappointment, he
had never heard of it.
Upon arrival, we inquired about seeing the manuscript
collection. As they we were preparing
for new exhibition, the collection was not available for viewing. However, the person agreed to find the
curator. When the curator asked about
our interest and we specifically referred to papyrus manuscripts 45 and 46, the
expression on his face changed. He
immediately brought us back to the new exhibit and gave us the chance to see
the collection of manuscripts. What was
especially meaningful for us was to gaze upon a portion of St. Mark’s Gospel,
dated from the early part of the 3rd Century.
April 25 is the date on which the Church commemorates St.
Mark the Evangelist. While we do not
have Mark’s “autograph” (the handwritten manuscript from the evangelist
himself), we can have great confidence in the Biblical text that we read
today. We often find critical Christian
scholars calling into question the Biblical text because of variant readings
from one manuscript to another. However,
the vast majority of variants are of minor note and are usually related to
matters such as word order or grammatical differences.
Mark is often connected with St. Peter according to
tradition. This young man, who was the
cousin of Barnabas, shows up several times as his mother’s home is some sort of
base of operations in Jerusalem (as indicated in Acts 12) and as he is included
on Paul’s missionary journey. In fact,
as Mark would abandon Paul and Barnabas, whether to include him on the
subsequent journey led to the break between the two. However, Paul’s later letters reveals that he
and Mark had been reconciled and that Paul found him useful for his ministry (2
Timothy 4).
There is much debate over which of the Synoptic Gospels
(Matthew, Mark, and Luke) came first.
Most scholars contend that Mark preceded the others and that Peter was a
primary source for his composition. On a
day such as this, we can thank God that He has preserved His Word among us and
by that Word He has revealed to us the Person and work of His Son, Christ
Jesus. We can be thankful for the
faithful witness of St. Mark. His Gospel is precise and to the point on one
hand, but gives a primary emphasis on the events of Holy Week. We can be encouraged in the faith by the
second Gospel’s revelation of Jesus as the Son of God.
So if you’re ever in Dublin, make sure you go to
Christchurch Cathedral. You should also
see the Book of Kells at Trinity College.
The Guinness Brewery tour is a fun distraction too. But make sure you make it to the Chester
Beatty Library and see P45. Or if Dublin’s
too far, they have a portion of the collection at the University of
Michigan. Either way, thanks be to God
for the faithful witness of St. Mark.
Collect for St. Mark, Evangelist – Almighty God, You have
enriched Your Church with the proclamation of the Gospel through the evangelist
Mark. Grant that we may firmly believe
these glad tidings and daily walk according to Your Word; through Jesus Christ,
our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and
forever. Amen.
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