Mark Seven Bible Institute 2007
Second Annual Study Week/Retreat
During the week of 17-22 June 2007, the Camp hosted its second annual Mark Seven Bible Institute study week/retreat. The Institute was inaugurated by the Very Revd Thomas J. Coughlin, O.P.Miss., in 2006 as an opportunity for Deaf adults to study the Scriptures. This year’s topic was the Gospel According to Mark, lectured mainly by one of the novices, fr. Adam Zawadzki, O.P.Miss.
During the first workshop on Sunday evening, the director, Matthew Hysell, presented an outline of the Gospel According to Mark and introduced the question that would lead the weeklong study: Why did Jesus consistently avoid proclaiming himself to be “the Son of God” until near the end of Mark’s narrative? From Monday through Thursday, fr. Adam presented four workshops daily, going through the entire narrative of Mark line by line, supplemented by a film with Deacon Patrick Graybill signing the gospel (The New Testament in ASL by Deaf Missions). The sessions covered many issues: the priority of Mark among the Evangelists, the ‘Synoptic Problem’ and the theory of Sayings Source Q, the early Christian challenge to Rome’s imperial claims, the centrality of the Cross in the life of Jesus, and Mark’s highly stylized use of symbolism and irony. At the end of the week, Matthew presented the final workshop: “Christology in the Gospel According to Mark.”
Although the participants learned a lot, they also prayed a lot! Each morning before breakfast, the participants gathered in the chapel for a spiritual exercise called lectio divina, a meditative reading of a short text from the Bible. Since Fr. Tom was unavailable during the week, the local pastor from St. Bartholomew’s Parish gave us permission to hold Communion Services. On Friday, 21 June, the participants went to Jordanville, NY, to visit Holy Trinity Monastery, a monastic community that included the seminary and the headquarters of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad (ROCA). The participants felt as though they stepped into nineteenth-century St. Petersburg! The pilgrimage included a tour of the enclosure, the baptistery (built to commemorate 1,000 years of Christianity in Russia), the cathedral church, and the main building that included a bookstore and a printing press. Afterwards, we were invited us to join the monks for lunch. Since it was Friday, the monks observed a fast. The lunch was meager and simple. Brother Adam helpfully reminded the director not to schedule a pilgrimage on a fast day next time!
The participants this year were Jeannette Costa, Lynnette Litourneau, Chris Roeback, and Kay Woods; toward the end of the week, we were joined by one more, Margaret Shea. At the end of the week, we evaluated our experience and the feedback was very positive. Every participant expected that the Institute would continue to provide advanced workshops on Scripture and expected that every one who comes is adequately prepared. Additionally, the participants voted to focus on the Gospel According to Matthew for next year’s session, which will be on 18-23 June 2008.
If you are interested in joining the third annual Mark Seven Bible Institute study week/retreat or if you have any questions, please feel free to contact the director, Matthew Hysell, at mghysell@netscape.net.
