The Gospel of Mark
In Mark 15, both the priests and the Roman prefect Pilate function in the mode of dominant culture. The clash over Jesus' identity places him in a liminal cultural position. If the reader has thought that Jesus' action and speech represent a clear cultural alternative in the Mediterranean world, Mark 15 calls this into question. In a context where one of Jesus' male associates has betrayed him and the rest of his associates have fled, people mock Jesus' identity and role. Who is he? Is he king of the Jews? Is he Messiah of Israel? If so, how can he be hanging on a tree in disgrace? Even the bandit revolutionaries who hang on the cross beside him "revile" him (15:32). No clear cultural identity emerges for Jesus as he suffers and dies. In these scenes Jesus is not simply a contracultural figure. He is a liminal cultural figure--outside of Jewish culture and outside of Greco-Roman culture.
From V. K. Robbins, Exploring the Texture of Texts, (Valley Forge, PA: Trinity Press International, 1996), p. 88.
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