Discipleship and Family Ties in Mark and Matthew

Familial tensions arising from conversion to Christianity are explored through a detailed analysis of the Gospels of Mark and Matthew. Dr. Barton employs form-critical, redaction-critical, literary-critical, and sociological perspectives to understand how these texts address family concerns. The study also contextualizes these issues within Jewish and Greco-Roman traditions, highlighting a common belief in transcending familial obligations for higher religious or philosophical commitments. Ultimately, the work reveals how the Jesus movement offered a new personal identity rooted in allegiance to Jesus and his disciples.