Mark's Little Apocalypse
What is the purpose of this story?Did Jesus really say this?
Histroical Context of Mark's Gospel
This Gospel was created shortly after the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. It was meant for an audience who was deprived of there faith and had no contact with God. The main purpose of this Gospel had been to give hope to the distraught people at the time and give them a link to God, as well as a way to live through this struggle.
Message of this Story for its Intended Audience
Mark created this story as a way of retelling the events that had occurred during the Jewish Roman War by Jesus. This would shock and awe his audience, who had been religiously decimated due to the events which transpired, that Jesus who had been prophesized as the Messiah/King of the Jews was able to foretell what will happen. This story gave hope to its readers and a way of coping with the events transpiring, as well as instructions on what to do now.
Characters of this Story, and Key Location
Jesus
The man who makes the prohpecy of the Temple's destruction. The Messiah.
The Disciples
Jesus' followers who stay and hear his proclamation of the Temple's destruction.
Jerusalem
Area in which the Temple, which was prophesized to be destroyed, was located.