Was The Gospel of Mark a Political Response to Nero's Reign
In order to understand why the gospels in the New Testament were written, we must know exactly what was occurring during that period in history. When the Gospel of Mark was written, we know there was a great deal of political unrest due to the Emperor Nero. The main question we must ask ourselves is, if the Gospel of Mark was written as a political response to Nero’s reign instead of a religious scripture, would it lessen the value of the gospel in a religious sense. The answer to this question will most likely vary amongst people because everyone is entitled to his or her own opinion. However, if this Gospel was written as a political response, in my opinion, it does lessen its value as a religious scripture. Looking back to the beginning of Nero’s 14-year reign in the year 54 CE we immediately see the political context which confronted the author of the Gospel of Mark. Nero was 16 years of age at the time and because of this he picked two advisors who heavily influenced him. Under the tutelage of Seneca and Burrus, Nero increased power to the Senate and once again provided some semblance of democracy to Rome. However, as Nero grew older and his priorities changed, he became increasingly arbitrary and self-indulgent. He poisoned his stepbrother and eventually executed his mother because of their efforts to seize the throne. During this time, he reduced the power of his advisors and accused them of embezzlement and treason. He became extremely paranoid and those he disliked were either exiled or executed. The event most often recorded about Nero’s reign was the fire in the year 64 CE. About one third of the city was destroyed completely during the blaze that lasted five days. Regardless of Nero’s relief and reclamation efforts, rumors were circulating that he had personally set the fire in order to clear land for his new palace. To deflect these rumors, Nero looked for a scapegoat and found it in the new religious group known as Christians.