St Mark: Cut passages, part 1

As my regular reader will doubtless recall, I have decided to examine the Gospel readings for Sunday Mass over the three year cycle, to see what has been cut.  Some passages are cut because they are repeated in two or three of the synoptic Gospels.  However, some have been cut that are not repeated, and some have been cut from all the Gospels in which they occur.

I have recently posted (courtesy of Ttony) Bugnini's rationale for this; but I am also interested in looking to see if there are any patterns in the cuts, and will do that once I have finished the analysis.

I started by looking at the cuts from St Matthew's Gospel (here and here).  

In this post, I examine the first 8 chapters of St Mark's Gospel.  As previously, passages which have been cut, and which are not duplicated by readings from one of the other Gospels over the three year cycle are in bold.


Chapter 2:


 13 - 17 Calling of Levi, dining with publicans and sinners. (St Matthew’s account used)

Chapter 3:

7 - 12 withdrawal from Galilee; great crowds, unclean spirits acknowledging Him, (nowhere else)

13- 20 Calling of the 12, commission, and naming of Peter,  (St Matthew’s account used)

Chapter 4: 

1 - 20, Parable of the sower,  (St Matthew’s account used)

21- 25  parable of the lamp, and the measure in which you are given. (nowhere else)

Chapter 5:

1-20, The Devils of Gerasa: ‘Legion’, the swine... (Parallel passage cut from both other synoptics)

Chapter 6: 

14-29, Herod hears of Christ; John the Baptist beheaded. (Parallel passage cut from both other synoptics)

35 - 44  Feeding of the five thousand (St Matthew’s account used)

45- 52 Walking on the Water (St Matthew’s account used)

53- 56 Cures at Gennesaret (also cut from St Matthew)

Chapter 7

NB These next two sets of verses (marked *) are cut from a passage read on a single Sunday (and are not found elsewhere):

* 9- 13 You have defeated God’s commandment to establish your own tradition: Corban

* 16-20 His disciples asked him the meaning... ‘Are you still so slow of wit? Uncleanness which goes into a man has no way of defiling him... Thus he declared all meat to be clean.

24-30 Syrophoenician woman’s daughter cured. (St Matthew’s account used)

Chapter 8:

1- 9 Feeding of the four thousand (St Matthew’s account also cut)

10 - 13 Sign of Jonah (St Matthew’s account also cut)

14 - 26 Leaven of the Pharisees (St Matthew’s account also cut)

22-26 Curing of the blind man at Bethsaida. (nowhere else)

36 - 39 How is a man better if he gain the whole world but lose his own soul? (St Matthew’s account used)