Chapter Fifteen

15:1-15 Jesus before Pilate – Jesus' condemnation: Up to now, everything has taken place in a purely Jewish environment. From now on, Pilate and the Roman troops will share with the Jewish Council the responsibility for the death of Jesus. Mark, however, insists on underlining the responsibility of the high priests, who are presented as envious, inciters, and manipulators of the will of the people. Through the interrogation, Pilate makes it clear that the accusations do not come from his side but from the Jewish authorities. Throughout the story, Jesus remains completely silent, in contrast to all those who speak around him. The silence will be maintained until the cross, where it will be broken by his prayer to the Father.

15:16-20 Mockery by the soldiers: While the Jews mock Jesus as a prophet, the Romans mock Jesus as a king. At the end of the mockery, Jesus is presented as the "Suffering Servant" who prepares to begin the way of the cross.

15:21-41 The crucifixion and death of Jesus: With sobriety, Mark narrates the crucifixion and death of Jesus. He does not take pleasure in describing the cruelty Jesus suffers. It is not the amount of pain that saves us, but his abandonment to the will of the Father. His adversaries see the crucifixion not as a gift but as a defeat. It does not occur to them that Jesus remains on the cross out of pure love. And if love is the truth of God, the cross symbolizes the greatest love expressed by anyone on behalf of his brothers and sisters. The exclamation of the Roman centurion is surprising because a foreigner makes it; it is the culmination of the revelation of the identity of Jesus (39). Mark speaks of a group of women who are present at a distance. They constitute the link between the cross event and the resurrection, between the disciples who have abandoned the Master and the risen Jesus who wants to gather them together again (15:1-8).

15:42-47 The burial of Jesus: In the absence of the disciples, Joseph of Arimathea takes charge of the burial. Thanks to his management, the body of Jesus is recovered. The women take note of where the body of the Master is deposited, for they intend to return. Their position, apparently passive, is a response of love to the love of Jesus.