Saturday of Holy Week

Holy Saturday. Today. In the tradition, the “harrowing of hell.” The Gospel of Mark is silent about the day. My question for you today: What is it about this Saturday, after all the week’s significant if not frantic activity leading to the execution of Jesus, that makes Mark so silent? In brief: what is going on that Mark has nothing to say about the day? This, by the way, is not a trick question or something that is a hidden secret. Just think about it. A large tradition has grown around this “harrowing of hell” thing, but don’t think about that tradition. Think about Mark’s accounting. Read the text. What is important to Mark?

By now you know I have been encouraging you to read Borg and Crossan’s The Last Week. If you have not, please do. If not, please read the Gospel of Mark in total. That being said, if you after this busy week of Holy Week have not read The Last Week, do not put it off as something esoterically interesting. It is not that. Not if you have any interest at all in getting at what Jesus is about.

So, again, what is going on that Mark has nothing to say about Saturday?

The church today likes to say, poetically: “It’s Friday, but Sunday’s comin’!” Ok, true, but there is perhaps no more day that we know this more than Saturday.