Background Information

Scholars disagree on the date of composition of Mark’s Gospel, with opinions ranging between the late 40s to around the year 100. The question regarding the dating is an important one because the answer we give it will affect how we interpret the text. For example, when Jesus is tempted in the desert, Mark says that he was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to him. This detail isn’t included in any of the other gospels. Only Mark mentions it. Why would he mention this seemingly insignificant detail? What could it mean?

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Most scholars believe that Mark wrote his gospel in the 60s or 70s to encourage the Christians in Rome to remain faithful, despite the persecutions they were suffering under emperor Nero. If this is true, then he may have mentioned the wild beasts for this purpose. Since the Christians were being thrown to the wild animals, they would have been consoled knowing that Jesus had also been with them. However, this interpretation isn’t possible for those who believe that the gospel was written in the 40s, well before the persecutions had started. Nero was, at that time, just a small child.

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Can you see how your opinion on the dating of the gospel can affect your understanding of the text? So, these questions are important. Unfortunately, we simply don’t know for sure when the gospel was written as there isn’t enough evidence to prove any of the proposed dates. We won’t look at the arguments in favor of each opinion in detail as this would require discussing details that go beyond the level of this introductory course. But keep this in mind during the course. Personally, I find the majority opinion that dates the gospel to around the 60s or 70s to be convincing.

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Note also that the question of the dating is related to two other important issues regarding the gospels: the Synoptic Problem and their historical reliability. The Synoptic Problem is concerned with the literary relationship between the three synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke). That is, which gospel was written first and used as a source for the others?

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Optional assignment – To learn more about the Synoptic Problem watch “The Synoptic Problem Explained” and/or read Felix Just, S.J., “The Synoptic Problem”

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The relationship between the dating of the gospels and their historical reliability is also very important. That is, can we trust what the gospels say? Are they historically reliable? For example, did Jesus’ miracles and his resurrection really happen? Or were they just invented by the first generation of Christians, who eventually put wrote them down as if they had truly happened that way?

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Those who emphasize the historicity of the gospels tend to favor an early date while those who challenge this lean towards a later date. The basic idea behind this is that the earlier the gospels were written, the more historically reliable they would be. Eyewitnesses could validate their claims and there would be less time for errors or novelties to creep in. On the other hand, a later gospel, written after all the eyewitnesses had died, would be less reliable, as it would be easier for the authors to introduce errors or novelties, either on purpose or not. Some compare the transmission of the accounts of Jesus’ life to the children’s telephone game. Just as in the game, the original message changes as it is transmitted from child to child, so too, this hypothesis claims, would the facts about Jesus’ life been changed as they were transmitted from generation to generation.

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As Catholics, we believe that the gospels were inspired by God and therefore teach the truth. Therefore, their historical reliability does not depend on when they were written. On this, the Catechism teaches:

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The Church holds firmly that the four Gospels, “whose historicity she unhesitatingly affirms, faithfully hand on what Jesus, the Son of God, while he lived among men, really did and taught for their eternal salvation, until the day when he was taken up.” (CCC 126)

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So, although the dating of Mark’s Gospel can affect how we interpret some of its passages, whether Mark was written in the 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, or even the 100s does not affect its historical reliability, because it is the inspired Word of God.