The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1889-03-29
REVIEW OF THE QUARTER
LESSON XIII, FIRST QUARTER, IN
TERNATlONAL SERIES, MARCH 81.

The Gospel Of st. Mark-Who He Was.
Character Of His Gospel-Reasons for
the Variations in Style Of the Four
Evangelist.
The first quarter of the present year is de-
voted to a study of Christ's life and teachings
as recorded In the Gospel according to st.
Mark. 1t is, therefore, most fitting to con-
slider the peculiarities of this Gospel, and to
at least glance at the oft debated question
why there should be four distinct accounts Of
the Saviours mission on earth, strangely va
rying in style and the subjects made promi-
nent, and yet all agreeing in the essentials of
Christian doctrine and ethics. 1t is evident
even to the unlearned reader that each writer
addressed different class, but each sets forth
the same eternal truths-the fatherhood of
God and the helplessness Of man, the divinity
Of Christ and His atoning death, the neces-
sity of faith, repentance and baptism for the
remission of sins, the moral government Of
the universe, grace, eternal life, the way of
redemption, the possibility of eternal separa.
ton from God and all that is good.
First, it must be noted that the time of
Christs incarnation was divinely appointed
for the only period in all history when the
civilized world was under one government,
when one written language was used by all
scholars and statesmen, when the laws gov
erning the empire were in general principles
the same, and when the dignity of citizen
ship under one ruler was the citizens protec-
ton, from the mountains of Scotland in the
north to the Sahara in the SOUTH and from
the Pillars of Hercules to. the river Eu-
pirates Never before the establishment
of the Roman empire had this been the case.
Never has it been the case since the over
throw Of that empire. The Romans had con-
quered all the central belt of the known
world; their civil war had ended in the estab-
lishment of an imperial line and when all
opposition to that line had ceased and the
long peace under Augustus Caesar had So
cured stability and ORDER Christ's earthly
mission began.
In all the western half of the empire Latin
was the vernacular, in all the eastern half
Greek; both mingled, Of course, with local
dialects. In both sections the tavern keep
ers, merchants, sailors, travellers and schol-
ars, as a rule, understood both languages;
but while the Latin was official, Greek was the
language OF most writer's, and the Roman
rulers over each of the 100 provinces under
stood both, and in most cases knew some
thing of the local dialect. Thus PLATE
wrote the inscription over the cross
written in Greek and Latin and Hebrew
mot that the Jews Of that day spoke
Hebrew, for they did not, but it was
their sacred or written language.
The corrupt tongue they spoke, commonly
called Caelo-Syriac, was not reduced to writ
ing but many of its words were necessarily
quoted by some Of the New Testament writ
ers, and hence the reader will find the words,
ttxr,I,; ob 80 INV, ;p%a oto%i ofo
thought necessary to translate some phrases
for the people they aimed to reach.
To Jew of Palestine the empire was d.
vided into ,"Jew and Gentile;" to Roman,
into 'bond and free," and to a scholar, into
Greek and barbarian" The last word meant,
not necessarily, as now, a wild or uncivi4zed
man, but merely one who could not speak
Greek-that Isl "prattler," one whose talk |
was like ''barbar" to Greek ear. Thus the |
Greeks called the Persians ''barbaroi," even
when the latter were as civilized as them
yseiyas4 With these hints the reader mar sso
the force of many short suggestions, espe-
cally in Mark and Luke; but he should note |
that ST. Paul, as the great apostle to the
Gentiles, constantly endeavors to do away
with such distinctions as between Christians.
In these facts, too, we find the principal rea-
son for the four Gospels.
1t is, first, self evident that st. Matthew
wrote for the Jews; and there is some evil
dence that his gospel was first composed in
Hebrew, and not long after the crucifxion,
but the Greek copy, as we now have it, did
not appear till thirty years later. St. Mark,
as evidently, wrote for a somewhat larger
constituency, and one which needed brief
statement of facts rather than lengthy adj
dresses, but still people familiar with the |
local affairs Of Palestine. In st. Luke we
find from the start remarkable difference.
He begins by stating that many accounts
have been written, and therefore he will pre-
sent the exact facts as he received them from
eve witnesses Lastly, st. John wrote when
heresies had begun to trouble the church, and
some teachers were tainted with the fancies
of Greek philosophy.
Mark may be called the strictly historical
evangelist. He was tho son of a woman
named Mary, whose house at Jerusalem was
a resort of the first Christians. He travelled
with Paul and Barnabas to Antioch, and
was afterwards an intimate associate of Paul
as we'll as of Peter. The tradition of the
early church was that he founded the church
at Alexandria in Egypt and suffered martyr
dom there. 1t is long disputed question in
the church whether Mark based his gospel
on that OF Matthew or ODCalneQ his factS |
directly from st. Peter, and very large and
respectable school maintains that all the
later gospels, and perhaps that of Matthew,
also, were compiled from an original work
q sort of memorabilia of the sayings and acts
of Christ-which is no longer in existence.
All agree that it was written in Rome, in the
Greek language. and at some period between
the deaths of Peter and Paul and the destruc-
ton of Jerusalum. | should he noted, how
ever that while all agree that St John out
lived all the other apostles, yet it is claimed
that in their present form the gospels of
Luke and John are contemporary. 1t is not
important, however, as we have the unani-
nous testimony of the apostolic fathers
chose whose youth was in apostolic times
that the four gospels were accepted by the
entire church as the inspired record Of
Christ's mission. The point to be chiefly
noted here is that the four accounts were in
sense necessary to meet the wants of the
different classes in the empire, and that ST.
Mark set down the facts detailed by all the
others in form suited for historic arrange
ment.
Jews and Gypsies In London.