Mark Challenges the Aeneid

Book excerpt: Most scholars believe that Mark wrote his Gospel to the Romans. True: but in addition to presenting the Gospel to the Romans, Mark actually contextualized his Gospel by challenging the leading propaganda of his day, Virgil's Aeneid. The Roman poet, Virgil, wrote his masterpiece epic poem, the Aeneid, to promote the myth that Caesar Augustus was the son of god. The Aeneid went viral almost immediately upon publication in 19 BC, becoming Rome's premier piece of propaganda that promoted Augustus as the emperor who would bring peace to the world. Within the first century, the Aeneid reached from Masada to northern Britain and became a foundational piece of Roman education. Mark's mother, Mary, and his uncle, Joseph/Barnabas, raised him in wealth, and educated him in the four languages of Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek, and Latin. They drew him to Jesus, and Barnabas took Mark on the first missionary journey. Mark spent time with Peter in Rome, where Mark wrote his Gospel in Greek. Mark most certainly had direct access to the most influential piece of Latin literature, the Aeneid, and he wrote his masterpiece Gospel comparing Augustus with Jesus, the true Son of God.