Saint Mark: Apostle, Evangelist and founder

Mark in the apostolic writings

Acts names John, also called Mark, in the story of the apostolic mission. He accompanied Barnabas and Paul, and later travelled with Barnabas to Cyprus after Paul and Barnabas disagreed over taking him on another journey. His place within these relationships brings the evangelist into the living world of the first Christian missions.

Colossians 4:10 sends greetings from Mark and identifies him as the cousin of Barnabas. In the Church's received tradition, this Mark is the evangelist and the apostolic founder of Alexandria.

Sources: Acts 15.36–41 · Colossians 4.10 · Eusebius, Church History II.15–16, 24

The Gospel entrusted to the Church

Eusebius preserves the early tradition connecting Mark's Gospel with Peter's preaching. He relates that Peter's hearers asked Mark to set down the teaching they had received. The account places the Gospel within the apostolic proclamation that formed the earliest Christian communities.

The Gospel itself begins with Jesus Christ and the ministry of John the Baptist. Its opening chapter moves through baptism and temptation to the call of disciples, teaching, deliverance, healing and prayer. Reading it brings the visitor from the evangelist's portrait to the Lord whom he proclaims. Mark's lasting place in the Church is inseparable from that proclamation.

Sources: Eusebius, Church History II.15–16, 24 · Gospel according to Mark 1

Alexandria in the received tradition

The Patriarchate honours Mark as its first bishop and founder. Its account places his preaching, the formation of the Christian community and his martyrdom in Alexandria. It remembers his burial at Bucolus, where a church dedicated to him later stood. The record gives this foundation a sacred geography as well as a succession of names.

The Patriarchate's history places Saint Mark's foundation in AD 43. Its patriarchal catalogue records the traditional dates 40–63 for his ministry. These chronologies place the beginning of Alexandrian Christianity within the apostolic generation.

Sources: Patriarchate of Alexandria — Previous Patriarchs, page 7 · Patriarchate of Alexandria — History

The Church remembers a martyr

The Orthodox Church commemorates Saint Mark on 25 April. Liturgical biography tells of his being seized while celebrating the Liturgy and dragged through the streets of Alexandria. Christians honour him as a martyr: a witness whose preaching and suffering belong together.

The Church remembers Saint Mark through its prayer and commemorations. His feast joins the proclamation of the Gospel with the remembrance of his apostolic witness and martyrdom.

Reading the icon

Icons identify Mark through his place among the four evangelists, his halo and the Gospel he holds or writes. The lion is his traditional evangelist symbol; the Orthodox Church in America's account connects that symbolism with the biblical visions of the living creatures.

Emmanuel Tzanes painted the illustrated icon in 1657; it is held by the Benaki Museum in Athens. Mark appears at work with his Gospel, accompanied by the lion associated with his evangelist's symbol. The composition joins the act of writing with the Church's continuing proclamation of his witness.

Sources: Benaki Museum icon of Saint Mark by Emmanuel Tzanes (1657) — Wikimedia Commons file record

Reading Saint Mark’s Gospel

Mark introduces Jesus through His proclamation of the Kingdom, His call to disciples, and His healing of people who come to Him. The story moves from the towns and villages of Galilee towards Jerusalem. As it unfolds, the disciples learn that following Christ involves trust, service and the carrying of the cross.

The parable of the sower gives a useful starting point for a reader. It asks how the word is received and what allows it to bear fruit. Read the whole passage, including the disciples’ question and Christ’s explanation. The Gospel addresses the reader personally while keeping that response within the story of Jesus and His disciples.

Sources: Gospel according to Mark 1 · The Gospel according to Mark, chapter 4 · The Gospel according to Mark, chapter 8

A route through the Gospel

These passages introduce several themes that recur in the Gospel. Read each passage in a Bible, then return to the surrounding chapter. A notebook can help you remember a question for the priest or a detail to revisit when the passage is proclaimed in church.

Sources: Gospel according to Mark 1 · The Gospel according to Mark, chapter 4 · The Gospel according to Mark, chapter 8

An apostolic inheritance in Tanzania

For the Church in Arusha and Central Tanzania, Saint Mark’s name establishes a relationship with the apostolic see of Alexandria. That relationship is visible in the commemoration of the Patriarch, the ministry of the Metropolitan, and the shared sacramental life of the parishes. Each local community belongs within a wider Church whose history and teaching reach back through many generations.

Learning about Saint Mark therefore opens several paths at once: reading the Gospel, exploring the history of Alexandria, meeting its Fathers, and understanding the Church’s mission in Africa today. The same Gospel proclaimed in the ancient Mediterranean world is heard in the worship and teaching of Tanzanian communities.

Sources: Patriarchate of Alexandria — History