Kata Markon

[JFAlward AT aol.com]

In a message dated 4/25/02 12:19:22 PM Pacific Daylight Time, 

Steve Black wrote:

Here is where I have more difficulty with Joe's hypothesis, because he posits 
no reason other than the fact that Mark wanted to tie Jesus together with the 
OT. (I hope I haven't too grotesquely  caricatured Joe's position.)


Alward responds:

Steve doesn't misrepresent my position.  In several articles on my web site I 
attempt to show that Mark evidently scoured the Septuagint for stories about 
heroic figures whom he could have Jesus emulate, and then he adapted those 
stories to fit Jesus.  

Anyone familiar with Scripture in Mark's time could not have failed to 
recognize that Mark's Jesus did things better even than did Moses, Elisha, 
Elijah, David, and as well as the Lord himself.  Thus, Mark repeatedly 
provided "evidence" that showed that Jesus was as good as God, or even God 
himself.  But, is there evidence that Mark *also* wanted his readers to 
compare Jesus to Odysseus?  

Several articles detailing the case against Homeric influence in Mark's 
gospels are found in the "Gospels" section of the directory on the web site 
provided below.


Joseph F. Alward
"A Skeptical View of Christianity and the Bible"
http://members.aol.com/jalw/joseph_alward.html