From Thesis to Triathlon

I am glad to report that I finally finished the process of writing my thesis. It has been a great experience, but I'm also glad to be done. So what's next? I am taking a year between my master's and PhD. to do some more language study. I'll do another year of Attic Greek and a year of accelerated Latin. In the meantime I'll be putting together PhD. applications.

Besides the thesis, one other activity that has taken up my summer is triathlon training. I've spent my "free" time training for the three events of the triathlon (swim, bike, run). This will be my first Tri and because of that I am doing the shortest one possible as not to kill myself on my first try. It is a .6 mile swim, 12.4 mile bike and 3.1 mile run. I hope to someday do an IronMan. Perhaps the same year I finish my PhD?

The Joy of Finishing a Draft!

I finished a draft today and turned it in to my advisor and second reader for comment. I am very excited about the prospect of being done! I have loved researching, but I love being done more! Thank you to my wonderful wife for putting up with me through all of this!

Thesis should be mandatory!

Wow, it has been way too long since my last update. I have been doing a lot of reading this summer, and I admit, not enough writing. But, I've learned a lot! One of the things I'm most excited it about is how I'm increasing my knowledge in the literary field. Dealing with the topic of a motif took me into the realm of literary criticism. I've read definition after definition of the motif, swam through criteria for motifs, read about implied readers and implied authors...you get the point I had to step outside of my comfort zone (biblical studies) and read stuff that I would never have picked up if it weren't for this thesis. That just goes to show the importance of this process. Not only does it increase a one's knowledge in his or her field, but it also creates a well-rounded scholar.

After looking at how far I've come as a scholar, I realized the importance of this journey. Then I realized something else. I am the first student from my school in I don't know how many years to do the thesis option. Yes, that's right, option. I don't know how the majority of theological schools do it, but mine does not require MTS students to do a thesis. I chose to do one because of my own educational goals, which required a thesis to be done. I know I will, in my final evaluation, suggest that all MTS students be required to do a thesis. This is not because I had to do it and no one else did, but because I have seen how much one can learn from working on a project like this, both in the field and well outside the field!

EGLBS Presentation

I had the privilege of presenting a brief version of my thesis at the Eastern Great Lakes Biblical Society regional conference. I have to say that my presentation went very well. I was a bit nervous, this being my first presentation, but everything went smoothly, I read at a normal pace (I think), and I was able to field all of the questions with confidence. Here are a few of the issues raised:

-How could Mark support secrecy given the nature of the gospels?
-How do I reconcile the revelation of the secret beginning in Mark 8?
-Is Jesus' messiahship really the secret?

Most of these questions I've been thinking about for a while now and I found myself able to answer most of them. That was a very good feeling! I also had the opportunity to have conversations with David Barr and Timothy Dwyer. Professor Dwyer invited me to lunch and we discussed his research on Mark's secrecy motif which has influenced my own research greatly. Among many things he encouraged me to take a look at Mark's use of παραδιδωμι in light of my argument that Mark's use of secrecy is a pragmatic warning to revealers. I hope to develop something on this in time to add it to my thesis before it is due.

Thesis Considerations

I have decided to use this space to write about my thesis research. Hopefully this will help me hash some things out and to receive some constructive criticism as well. In this post I would like to give a summary of my thesis. I hope to expand on this summary in further posts. The title of my thesis is "Mark’s Secrecy Motif: Hellenistic Mystery Cults and the Warning Against Revealers in Mark’s Gospel." I hope to address the following questions:

• What was the function of secrecy in Hellenistic mystery cults and in Mark’s gospel?
• Were there advantages to being initiated into the mysteries, including soteriological and eschatological advantages?
• What was the secret in Mark?
• Did Mark’s Gospel function to reveal the secret or to show the consequences of revelation?

The thesis will address the influence of Hellenistic mystery cults on early Christianity, especially the Markan Community. I hope to clearly identify the advantages of initiation into a few specific mystery cults and to compare those advantages to those described in Mark's Gospel. I will ultimately move to argue that the Markan Community in fact functioned as a mystery cult, and Mark's Gospel was warning to those who might reveal the secret. I will also move to argue that the action of the women in Mark 16.8 is Mark's ideal reaction to the secret.