The Way Down Is The Way Up

Having studied Mark’s passion story to this point, and disregarding later theologies of atonement, reflect on what this Study Unit says to you personally. Write about a page for your Portfolio.

Working through this Study Unit and grappling with the material has been an enormously challenging yet wonderfully liberating experience. I hadn’t realised how ingrained and entrenched atonement theology has been in my Christian journey: until I tried to disregard it in order to write this Portfolio! But I think that after much reading and pondering I am now able to hear and understand Mark’s very welcome message.

The way Mark tells this story shows me that the essential requirement is to have faith in Jesus as the Christ who had the humility to accept his human identity, along with the courage to accept and confess his extraordinary identity, and yet understand that his identity did not exempt him from suffering and death in carrying out his purpose of fulfilling God’s plan.

Jesus knew that he would suffer and die if he chose to go along with God’s plan, and out of love he freely chose to participate with God’s will. Mark’s purpose of encouraging Jesus’ followers to have faith and courage, and to participate with Jesus by passing along the way through death to a new life here on earth is achieved with the help of examples of failed discipleship: betrayal by Judas as someone close to Jesus; denial and refusal by Peter to accept that Jesus’ way was not about power and domination; and the fulfilment of the Zec 13:7 prophecy when the disciples scattered like sheep. The way that Mark presents these failures serves to demonstrate that God’s plan is not derailed by failure: it continues.

It is not easy to understand that suffering and loving service are the chosen way!

Jesus and Barabbas both embrace the good intention of liberating God’s people from the oppression of Imperial rule and the unjust collaboration of the religious leaders in this oppression – but Barabbas’ way is to pursue a power/domination/fight brand of violent revolution, while Jesus’ way is all about suffering and non-violence. Mark’s telling presents us with a very challenging choice between these two very different ways of working towards a good goal.

The religious and political trials that Jesus is brought to, instead of being fair, are both about rejecting Jesus’ identity (as a prophet in the religious trial, and as a king in the political trial) – and ironically neither trail has actually understood Jesus’ identity and message: he is tried as a pretender to political power and domination in a system that cannot grasp the idea of non-violence or loving service as the way to lead. Barabbas would have been more fairly judged by the findings of these trials than Jesus was!

Mark’s Gospel judges Jesus to be the Christ, the Son of God, and the symbol of the people of God, who, though he had earthly authority, was so committed to his way of non-violent transformation that he was prepared to die in doing God’s will. Because Jesus was the Christ, he was resurrected, and will one day return in heavenly power and glory. Because the religious leaders and Pilate could not grasp this, they mocked Jesus.

What I’ve learned from this Study Unit is that the way to be a disciple of Jesus is to believe what Jesus says – about himself and about everything he taught – and to be kind and loving, and to do whatever service is within my power, without ever resorting to abuse of power and domination, even if my intention or goal is good.