The Tedious Process of Correctness

The editing process along with presenting a correct theological viewpoint is slow, meticulous, and tedious. However, the driving questions that are always present are as follows:

• Who is Mark, the author of this writing and why is it anonymous?

• What was the background of this author?

• Were there more than one person involved in this writing, was it a group project?

• What was the reason or purpose of this writing?

• How long did this gospel take to write, and what research was conducted in preparation?

• To whom was the author writing too, who is the audience?

• If the audience is known to have been illiterate and will only experience this work through hearing an oral presentation, why is the literary construct so complex?

• How was the writer of this gospel certain that his complex, two level literary approach was received and understood by his audience?

• Was the writer aware of Paul and his theological viewpoint?

• How did this writing become known to other churches and result in mass copying?

• How much different is the received text from the original autograph?

• What happened to this author after his work was received and copied?

Unfortunately we might never know the answer to many of these questions.