Letter 4

From: Bede, monk of Wearmouth-Jarrow and scholar To: Acca, Bishop of Hexham Date: ~720 AD Context: The dedicatory letter for Bede's Commentary on Mark, following up on the Luke commentary. Bede, unworthy servant of Christ, to the most beloved Bishop Acca, greetings. The Commentary on Mark is complete and I send it to you with the mixture of relief and dissatisfaction that I feel every time I finish a large work. The relief is that it is done. The dissatisfaction is that I can already see, as it leaves my hands, the places where I should have done better. The gospel of Mark is deceptively simple. On the surface it reads quickly, without the extended discourses of Matthew and John or the narrative grace of Luke. What is not simple is the theology underneath: Mark's understanding of discipleship, of the messianic secret, of the relationship between miracle and faith, is subtle and requires patient attention. I have tried to give it that attention. Where Mark's brevity left me uncertain, I have gone to the parallel passages in the other gospels and to the Fathers who have addressed the questions Mark raises. Where the text seemed straightforwardly clear, I have tried to say that clearly and move on rather than creating commentary where none is needed. I hope it is useful for the lectio divina and for preaching. That is primarily what I had in mind. Your servant and student in the faith, Bede