Written by Fr. Dennis O'Neill
John Mark is the inspired writer of the earliest of the four Gospels, and the Gospel upon which Sts. Matthew and Luke rely. It is assumed that the person referred to in Acts: 12:12,25 and 15:37 as John Mark is identical with the Mark mentioned by St. Paul in Colossians 4:10; 2 Timothy 4:11, and Philemon 24 and St. Peter in 1 Peter V:13. The house of his mother Mary in Jerusalem was the meeting place of the Apostles. Probably he was converted by Peter. He was a companion of Paul on his first journey, but returned to Jerusalem, being displeased with the liberal reception into the Church of gentiles by Paul (Acts 13:5ff) and the difficulties of the journey. For his narrow-mindedness, he was rejected by Paul on his second missionary journey, but was accompanied by Barnabas to Cyprus (Acts 15:37). He was reunited with Paul towards the end of his first Roman captivity and sent by him to Colossae (Col. 4:10). During his captivity, Paul sent for Mark (2 Timothy 4:10). It has been suggested that Mark was the water carrier in Mark 14:13 or the young man who fled naked in the Garden of Olives in Mark 14: 51 or the one in whose house the Last Supper and the Descent of the Holy Spirit took place. A Roman tradition relates that Mark wrote his Gospel at the request of the Roman Christians and under the direction of Peter. It is almost certain that he is he disciple whom Peter calls “my son Mark” (1 Peter 5:13). According to tradition, Mark was the founder and the first bishop of the Church of Alexandria, Egypt. The Copts of Egypt call him “Apostle of Egypt, Libya, Marmarica, and the Pentapolis.” A later 7th century tradition claims that Peter sent him from Rome to Aquileia to evangelize and establish the Church there prior to his going to Alexandria. He died in peace in Alexandria around the year 68 and was buried there in what became the Cathedral of St. Mark. The theft of his remains from Alexandria and their “translation” to Venice is very early and one of the most famous relic thefts in history.
This is why and when it happened. Aquileia was an episcopal see, centered in the ancient city of Aquileia, situated at the head of the Adriatic Sea on what is now the Italian seacoast. For many centuries, it played an important part in Church history; and several councils took place there. St. Hermagoras was its first bishop and said to have been martyred in 70, together with his deacon, St. Fortunatus. In 285, another of its bishops, St. Hilarius, was martyred. When the Lombards invaded Italy in 568, Bishop Paulinus I of Aquileia fled to the city of Grado, taking with him the relics of the three martyrs. Shortly after establishing himself in Grado, he died. This began a centuries-long rivalry between Aquileia and Grado over whether or not the title of “patriarch” moved with Paulinus when he fled to Grado. The issue was supposedly settled during a 9th century episcopal gathering in Mantua, when, under pressure from the Carolingian emperor, the bishops sided with Aquileia. During this same time, the rapidly growing city of Venice was struggling for independence from the Byzantine and the Carolingian emperors, both of whom wanted to dominate the city and control its interests. In 827, it was decided that it was time tip the scale in favor of Venice by stealing the body of St. Mark. Possession of the remains of the Evangelist would draw pilgrims and increase business.
Every aspect of the translation of St. Mark has been studied with greater attention than has any other relic theft because of its acknowledged pivotal importance in the history of Venice. A century of scholarship has established an acceptable account of this famous theft. According to the 11th century narration - the oldest surviving - a fleet of ten Venetian trading vessels sought shelter in the Muslim-controlled city of Alexandria during a storm. This is said to have been “by the will of God”; hence there was no intentional violation of the edict of Emperor Leo V which forbade commercial contact with the Muslims. In Alexandria, two of the Venetian merchants, Buono da Malamocco and Rustico da Torcello, went daily to pray at the tomb of St. Mark, located in a church near the port. There they made the acquaintance of Theodore and Stauracius, a priest and a monk respectively. Theodore, fearful for the dwindling Christian community under Islamic rule, made it known that the Caliph Al-Ma’mun had ordered the demolition of the church in order to recover building materials for new mosques, and suggested that Mark’s body be safely removed to Venice. To avoid raising suspicion, the body was substituted with the remains of St. Claudia, which were also present in the church. Mark’s relics, placed into a basket and covered in pork and cabbages, were then successfully smuggled past the Muslim customs officials and embarked on the Venetians’ ship. Several miracles occurred during the perilous voyage, until she ship arrived safely in Venice, where the body was received by the Bishop of Olivolo and then taken in solemn procession to the Doge, Giustiniano Participazio. The Doge kept the relics secretly in his modest palace but asked his wife to build a basilica for the relics after his death. She did this, placing it between the palace and the chapel of the Byzantine St. Theodore Stratelates, until then the patron of Venice. It was replaced by the current basilica of San Marco, which was modeled after the imperial Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople and was dedicated October 8, 1094. The remains of St. Mark have remained under the high altar there ever since.
John Mark is the inspired writer of the earliest of the four Gospels, and the Gospel upon which Sts. Matthew and Luke rely. It is assumed that the person referred to in Acts: 12:12,25 and 15:37 as John Mark is identical with the Mark mentioned by St. Paul in Colossians 4:10; 2 Timothy 4:11, and Philemon 24 and St. Peter in 1 Peter V:13. The house of his mother Mary in Jerusalem was the meeting place of the Apostles. Probably he was converted by Peter. He was a companion of Paul on his first journey, but returned to Jerusalem, being displeased with the liberal reception into the Church of gentiles by Paul (Acts 13:5ff) and the difficulties of the journey. For his narrow-mindedness, he was rejected by Paul on his second missionary journey, but was accompanied by Barnabas to Cyprus (Acts 15:37). He was reunited with Paul towards the end of his first Roman captivity and sent by him to Colossae (Col. 4:10). During his captivity, Paul sent for Mark (2 Timothy 4:10). It has been suggested that Mark was the water carrier in Mark 14:13 or the young man who fled naked in the Garden of Olives in Mark 14: 51 or the one in whose house the Last Supper and the Descent of the Holy Spirit took place. A Roman tradition relates that Mark wrote his Gospel at the request of the Roman Christians and under the direction of Peter. It is almost certain that he is he disciple whom Peter calls “my son Mark” (1 Peter 5:13). According to tradition, Mark was the founder and the first bishop of the Church of Alexandria, Egypt. The Copts of Egypt call him “Apostle of Egypt, Libya, Marmarica, and the Pentapolis.” A later 7th century tradition claims that Peter sent him from Rome to Aquileia to evangelize and establish the Church there prior to his going to Alexandria. He died in peace in Alexandria around the year 68 and was buried there in what became the Cathedral of St. Mark. The theft of his remains from Alexandria and their “translation” to Venice is very early and one of the most famous relic thefts in history.
This is why and when it happened. Aquileia was an episcopal see, centered in the ancient city of Aquileia, situated at the head of the Adriatic Sea on what is now the Italian seacoast. For many centuries, it played an important part in Church history; and several councils took place there. St. Hermagoras was its first bishop and said to have been martyred in 70, together with his deacon, St. Fortunatus. In 285, another of its bishops, St. Hilarius, was martyred. When the Lombards invaded Italy in 568, Bishop Paulinus I of Aquileia fled to the city of Grado, taking with him the relics of the three martyrs. Shortly after establishing himself in Grado, he died. This began a centuries-long rivalry between Aquileia and Grado over whether or not the title of “patriarch” moved with Paulinus when he fled to Grado. The issue was supposedly settled during a 9th century episcopal gathering in Mantua, when, under pressure from the Carolingian emperor, the bishops sided with Aquileia. During this same time, the rapidly growing city of Venice was struggling for independence from the Byzantine and the Carolingian emperors, both of whom wanted to dominate the city and control its interests. In 827, it was decided that it was time tip the scale in favor of Venice by stealing the body of St. Mark. Possession of the remains of the Evangelist would draw pilgrims and increase business.
Every aspect of the translation of St. Mark has been studied with greater attention than has any other relic theft because of its acknowledged pivotal importance in the history of Venice. A century of scholarship has established an acceptable account of this famous theft. According to the 11th century narration - the oldest surviving - a fleet of ten Venetian trading vessels sought shelter in the Muslim-controlled city of Alexandria during a storm. This is said to have been “by the will of God”; hence there was no intentional violation of the edict of Emperor Leo V which forbade commercial contact with the Muslims. In Alexandria, two of the Venetian merchants, Buono da Malamocco and Rustico da Torcello, went daily to pray at the tomb of St. Mark, located in a church near the port. There they made the acquaintance of Theodore and Stauracius, a priest and a monk respectively. Theodore, fearful for the dwindling Christian community under Islamic rule, made it known that the Caliph Al-Ma’mun had ordered the demolition of the church in order to recover building materials for new mosques, and suggested that Mark’s body be safely removed to Venice. To avoid raising suspicion, the body was substituted with the remains of St. Claudia, which were also present in the church. Mark’s relics, placed into a basket and covered in pork and cabbages, were then successfully smuggled past the Muslim customs officials and embarked on the Venetians’ ship. Several miracles occurred during the perilous voyage, until she ship arrived safely in Venice, where the body was received by the Bishop of Olivolo and then taken in solemn procession to the Doge, Giustiniano Participazio. The Doge kept the relics secretly in his modest palace but asked his wife to build a basilica for the relics after his death. She did this, placing it between the palace and the chapel of the Byzantine St. Theodore Stratelates, until then the patron of Venice. It was replaced by the current basilica of San Marco, which was modeled after the imperial Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople and was dedicated October 8, 1094. The remains of St. Mark have remained under the high altar there ever since.
In June, 1968, Pope St. Paul VI returned a small relic of St. Mark, given to him by Patriarch Giovanni Urbani of Venice, to the Coptic Patriarch, Pope Cyril VI, who enshrined it in St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in Cairo. Patriarch Urbani was succeeded by Cardinal Albino Luciani, who became Pope John Paul I. His successor as Patriarch of Venice was Cardinal Marco Ce. On December 7, 1980, Cardinal Ce removed from the sarcophagus the right ulna and a carpal bone from the right hand of St. Mark, and placed them in a gilded bronze arm reliquary, with semi-precious stones. He kept this reliquary in his private collection. After his death on May 12, 2014, his family obtained it. And, from them, in February of 2023, it came to Morton Grove, Illinois, to its new home in the Shrine of All Saints.
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