Feast of St. Mark, April 25, 2018

Mark’s words have echoed down the centuries to communicate belief in Jesus Christ, our Redeemer

Reflections on the readings for the Feast of St. Mark (April 25, 2018): 1 PT 5:5-14, PS 89:2-3,6-7,16-17, MK 16:15-20

MISSIO offers “Preaching Mission,” as a homily help, providing connections to mission from the readings of Sundays, Feast Days and Holy Days. 

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Mark. The evangelist is considered by many to be the author of the oldest of the Gospels, written between 60 and 70 A.D. 

Mark himself fulfilled the final command of Christ which he shared through his writings: “Jesus appeared to the Eleven and said to them: ‘Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved’” (Mark 16:15-16). The Gospel of Mark is brief, but contains all his readers need to learn about our Lord’s message of salvation. We discover the story of His mission, miracles and mercy. Ultimately, after His Passion, Crucifixion and Resurrection, we recognize that Jesus is truly the Messiah – and the Son of God.

Mark accompanied SS. Peter, Paul and Barnabas on various missionary journeys. We also know that his mother was an early disciple of Jesus and supporter of the Apostles’ work. Mark is often credited with starting the Christian community at Alexandria, Egypt, where he became the first bishop and may have been martyred for his faith in our Lord.