Today you'll be reading the shortest of Jesus' biographies in the New Testament, the Gospel of Mark. The translation on Camino, rendered from the Greek by Prof. Murphy, preserves more of the character of the Greek so you can get a flavor for how rough and frankly awkward Mark's version of Jesus' story often is.
Skim read this gospel to familiarize yourself with the basic storyline; but also note any odd features in the plot or the style that surprise you. And speaking of odd features, be sure to get to the end.
After you read Mark's gospel, read Warren Carter's chapter on the socio-political circumstances of Mark's gospel. We want to try to figure out what Mark's themes are, and then use the socio-political context of the gospel to explore why "Mark" might have emphasized these themes at that time. Here are some specific questions to answer:
What were some of the sources of chaos and anxiety during the 60s CE in Rome (a possible location for the gospel's composition or reception)?
What was the "triumph" that Vespasian and his son Titus mounted in Rome, and what functions did this ritual serve?
What are some of the features of Roman imperial theology and the economic and living conditions of the people of Rome, and how might Mark's audience have heard Jesus' preaching and teaching in the gospel given these circumcstances?
Assigned Readings
Primary: Gospel of Mark (Camino)
Secondary: Carter, Telling Tales about Jesus 75-98; online class prep
Optional: Carter, Telling Tales about Jesus 99-122 (read this summary of the Gospel if you need help understanding the primary text—that is, the Gospel itself)
Warren Carter is Professor of New Testament at Brite Divinity School, part of Texas Christian University. He specializes in the Roman imperial context of early Christianity, and has written over twenty books and dozens of articles on the gospels and their political context.
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Iverson, Kelly R. and Christopher W. Skinner, eds. Mark as Story: Retrospect and Prospect, SBL Resources for Biblical Study 65. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2011.
The Necropolis Excavations below St. Peter's Basilica in Rome - St. Peter's Basilica, a Catholic church in Vatican City, was built on top of an early Roman necropolis ("city of the dead"). Here, Roman families built little houses (mausolea) to inter relatives and keep their memory alive through death masks, frescoes, and libations (liquid offerings poured into holes in the ground for their sustenance). Take a 3D tour of the streets that still lie below the church.
Video Links:
Ancient Rome in Google Earth - Google Earth partnered with Rome Reborn at the University of Virginia to reconstruct what Rome would have looked like in 320 CE — sometime after our period, but featuring sites like the Flavian Amphitheater built in the first century CE, the same time Carter describes in his chapter on the background of Mark's Gospel.
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Vespasian as General and Emperor - This documentary provides some great visuals of the turmoil in first-century Rome that Warren Carter describes.
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Lithodomos VR - This Australian company is creating 3D tours of reconstructed ancient sites, from the Jerusalem Temple to the Flavian Amphitheater in Rome and the Odeion in Athens. Their app is available for Apple and Android.
Virtual 3D Ancient Jerusalem App - Brigham Young University has developed an app that provides virtual tours of Jerusalem in the time of Jesus. This video provides an overview; the app is available for Apple and Android systems.
Today you'll be reading the shortest of Jesus' biographies in the New Testament, the Gospel of Mark. The translation on Camino, rendered from the Greek by Prof. Murphy, preserves more of the character of the Greek so you can get a flavor for how rough and frankly awkward Mark's version of Jesus' story often is. 
