When they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd around them, and some scribes arguing with them. When the whole crowd saw him, they were immediately overcome with awe, and they ran forward to greet him. He asked them, ‘What are you arguing about with them?’ Someone from the crowd answered him, ‘Teacher, I brought you my son; he has a spirit that makes him unable to speak; and whenever it seizes him, it dashes him down; and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid; and I asked your disciples to cast it out, but they could not do so.’ He answered them, ‘You faithless generation, how much longer must I be among you? How much longer must I put up with you? Bring him to me.’ (Mark 9: 14-19)

Mark's portrayal of the disciples is consistently critical. The men that Jesus invited to join him are described as slow to understand, fearful, often faithless, and spiritually incompetent.

It is a curious theme for an author writing at least a generation - perhaps two - after the death of Jesus. A more typical political or psychological approach would be to exalt the leaders who had led the early church.

There is good evidence that Mark was the Greek and Latin interpreter for Peter. It is very likely that the Gospel of Mark is essentially Peter's memoir. But the text does not promote a Petrine cult of personality. Quite the opposite.

With the Pentecost story in our mind a modern Christian can explain away the theme. With this retrospective we can see the bumbling as ready for reform and refocusing by the resurrection of Jesus and descent of the Holy Spirit.

But the narrative of Mark ends with the crucifixion. In Mark's text the disciples continue their bumbling and even fall into betrayal. There is only one hero in Mark. And this hero - Peter's hero? - is in many ways a tragic mystery.