Cruciformed: The Literary Impact of Mark's Story of Jesus and His Disciples

Cruciformed is a reader-response, narrative-critical study of Mark's gospel focusing on the two main components of any story: character and plot. It explores how readers will identify with the role of the disciples who are portrayed realistically as embodying both good and bad traits and how the chief plot device is the way that expectations of both disciples and readers are brought to surprising fulfillment and reversal as they interact with Jesus. Contents: Reading the Gospel as Literature; Components of the Markan Narrative; Mark's Characters and Plot; Structuring the Story; Prologue: Disorientation in the Wasteland; Scene One: Healings and Oppostition; Scene Two: Riddles and Rejection; Scene Three: Feedings and Frustration; Scene Four: Predictions and Delusion; Scene Five: Prophecies and Confrontations; Scene Six: Crucifixion and Desertion; Sequel: Reorientation for the Future; Cruciformed Readers in Today's World; Annotated Bibliography.