The Gospel of St. Mark: (Cw 139)

By Rudolf Steiner

Book Overview

10 lectures, Basel, September 15-24, 1912 (CW 139)

Steiner tells us that Mark was especially able to reveal Christ as a cosmic being of his greatness and power, because, after having been a pupil of Peter, he moved to Alexandria during a time when Jewish philosophy and theology was at it's peak. There he absorbed the best aspects and views of pagan gnosis.

Mark was able to learn how humankind came arose from the spiritual world and how the luciferic and ahrimanic forces are taken into the human soul. Mark was able to accept everything that was told to him by pagan gnosis concerning our human origin out of the cosmos when our planet came into being. But he could also see, especially from his perspective in Egypt, the strong contrast between our original human destiny and what humankind had become during his time.

This lecture cycle, like the Gospel itself, is a work of art in its own right.

This book is a translation of the German edition Das Markus-Evangelium (GA 139).

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0880100834
• ISBN13: 9780880100830
• Release Date: November 1990
• Publisher: Steiner Books
• Length: 232 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.4" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

Hardships during physical and the Christ Impulse

[Greatly dictated by Peter (one of the 12 disciples / apostles) right after the period after the Crucifixion. John Mark (often named Marcus) son to Josie Mary and Marcus, and student of Peter) - in a later period - documented the Gospel during his stay in Alexandria (Egypt) where he witnessed/perceived the harsh physical conditions Egyptians lived in and was affected by that (the recording documented in the Bible was, as a letter, written in Rome). Thus: the story of the Gospel of Jeshua - as recorded by Mark - contains (more than any of the other recordings of the Gospel of Jeshua) descriptions of the physical manifestation / aspects of the events that took place. Emphasis - in recording by Mark - is placed on physical appearances, and the hardships during those physical appearances, and the Christ Impulse (described in the recording by Mark as "young man" (Mark 14:51-52; Mark 16:5-6)). It is in the two texts (about the "young man") that Mark has communicated about the Christ Impulse.] What is recorded in the lectures done by Rudolf Steiner is - at length - how souls lived before the Mystery of Golgotha (Christ Impulse) and how those souls lived after that Mystery at Golgotha when they were reincarnated in another body. Example of Hamlet and Hector - so contradictory yet the same soul was present in them... Hamlet was a reincarnation of Hector according to Rudolf Steiner. Really the whole book is about the contradictions between life of souls incarnated before Christ Impulse in the Earht (during Mystery of/at Golgotha) and life of those same souls incarnated after the Christ Impulse. Recorded are differences between ancient religions and Christianity (which emerged after Mystery). The emergence of materialsm etc. Constantly is referred to the Christ Impulse and how it changed events in the Earth. Also is recorded that Gospel - or Ev-angel - comes from the word Angeloi (G Angels)... Ev-angel means "coming from the Angels". So when the recording by Mark starts: "This is the beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ," it meant - according to Rudolf Steiner - that the beginning of sharing the divine knowledge by Jesus Christ - beginning during baptism in the river Jordan by John the Baptist. Then the Christ Impulse entered Jesus... [as recorded in John 1-17.] Also is recorded why it had to be John the Baptist and how Elijah was connected to it (as folk soul of the Hebrew people). The book is full of historical facts seen from spiritual perspective... it contains (relatively) a lot of knowledge about people in the Earth and what they were doing in the Earth. All to help explain the effect(s) of the Christ Impulse. [Focusing on physical manifestations, and effect(s) of Christ Impulse, was also the intention the intention of Mark with his recording of the Gospel of Jesus who became Christ.] PS Texts between [] are added by me to help better understand the text... they are not from the recordings in the book.