Conversations With Scripture: The Gospel of Mark

by Marcus J. Borg

Most Christians are familiar with the story told in Mark's gospel -- from the fishermen leaving their nets, to the miracle of the loaves and fishes, to the political rumblings and the crucifixion. But no one knows who "Mark" really was or why this gospel was written or why it's charged with such a sense of immediacy. For noted Jesus scholar Marcus Borg, reading Mark is like "meeting Jesus again for the first time." Individual readers and parish study groups will learn about this earliest gospel from the perspective of an important Anglican theologian.

Conversations with Scripture is the umbrella title of the Anglican Association of Biblical Scholars Study Series. Written in accessible language and sensitive to those who have little or no experience in reading the Bible, each book in the series focuses on exploring the historical and critical background, plus modern application of the texts. Other books in the series focus on the Gospel of John, Revelation, the Law, the Parables, and 2 Isaiah.

From the Introduction: "In thousands of congregations...this emerging way has been a means of revitalizing and deepening Christian understanding and commitment. It is a way that integrates faith and reason, head and heart, intellect, experience, and yearning. For me, it has made all the difference. This book is a small contribution to this process of adult theological re-education."

Genres: Religion, Biblical Studies, Theology

140 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2006

About the author

Borg was born into a Lutheran family of Swedish and Norwegian descent, the youngest of four children. He grew up in the 1940s in North Dakota and attended Concordia College, Moorhead, a small liberal arts school in Moorhead, Minnesota. While at Moorhead he was a columnist for the school paper and held forth as a conservative. After a close reading of the Book of Amos and its overt message of social equality he immediately began writing with an increasingly liberal stance and was eventually invited to discontinue writing his articles due to his new-found liberalism. He did graduate work at Union Theological Seminary and obtained masters and DPhil degrees at Oxford under G. B. Caird. Anglican bishop N.T. Wright had studied under the same professor and many years later Borg and Wright were to share in co-authoring The Meaning of Jesus: Two Visions, an amicable study in contrast. Following a period of religious questioning in his mid-thirties, and numinous experiences similar to those described by Rudolf Otto, Borg became active in the Episcopal Church, in which his wife, the Reverend Canon Marianne Wells-Borg, serves as a priest and directs a spiritual development program at the Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, Portland, Oregon. On May 31, 2009, Borg was installed as the first canon theologian at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral.

Marcus J. Borg is Canon Theologian at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Portland, OR. Internationally known in both academic and church circles as a biblical and Jesus scholar, he was Hundere Chair of Religion and Culture in the Philosophy Department at Oregon State University until his retirement in 2007.

Described by The New York Times as "a leading figure in his generation of Jesus scholars," he has appeared on NBC's "Today Show" and “Dateline,” PBS's "Newshour," ABC’s “Evening News” and “Prime Time” with Peter Jennings, NPR’s “Fresh Air” with Terry Gross, and several National Geographic programs. A Fellow of the Jesus Seminar, he has been national chair of the Historical Jesus Section of the Society of Biblical Literature and co-chair of its International New Testament Program Committee, and is past president of the Anglican Association of Biblical Scholars. His work has been translated into eleven languages: German, Dutch, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Indonesian, Italian, Spanish, Portugese, Russian, and French. His doctor's degree is from Oxford University, and he has lectured widely overseas (England, Scotland, Austria, Germany, Belgium, Hungary, Israel and South Africa) and in North America, including the Chautauqua and Smithsonian Institutions.

Reviews

[Jarkko Laine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Borg is my favorite biblical scholar and all, but this time I was expecting a more detailed analysis of the gospel -- which the book didn't provide.

[Trey Nowell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed Borg's synopsis of this book, definitely enjoy a book outlined in this way with various explanations of how people interpret certain things.

[J O · Rating 5 out of 5]

This entry by Marcus Borg is a valuable commentary on the gospel according to Mark. I have read and discussed it with a group of folks interested in learning and growing in their spiritual lives. This book is intended to get its readers to do just that--learn, question, reflect and grow.

[Dawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book for beginning Bible study. Introduces many progressive mainline ideas about Biblical scholarship in general and the Gospel of Mark in specific.

[Lissie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It doesn't say anything particularly new

[ANN DIPIETRO · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting explanation of place of mark amidst the gospels

[ABO · Rating 5 out of 5]

Borg is incredible!
I read this through Lent - and watched the amazing Max McLean dramatization of the Gospel of Mark (youtube) alongside. Great Combo! It was an inspiring Lenten journey.

[Jerry Landry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good overview and detailed explanation and analysis of the Gospel of Mark. Highly recommend for anyone wanting to do a deeper dive into Biblical scripture.

[Debra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Our church is using this for a five-week study; so I'll be "currently-reading" for a while. So far, I really like what I've read. I appreciate Marcus Borg's perspective which I sometimes dub "faith despite the facts" when I'm talking to folks who struggle with the fact vs. true distinctiveness of scripture.