Who wrote the gospel according to Mark? 

This topic has been raised previously but without reference to the supposition that this author not only invented the character Joseph of Arimathea, the story about Jesus’ burial and discovery of the empty tomb but was also sufficiently well-known and influential that the story was accepted and copied within a few years.

It is improbable that a hypothetical anonymous writer who was unknown to Paul and his followers could have carried out this task without leaving any sign of dissension. Who then could have written this gospel?

The traditional response is that the author was the John Mark who is mentioned as a fellow-worker by Paul in Philemon 24, along with Luke and others.    In Colossians 4:10, Mark is described as Jewish and the cousin of Barnabas and is mentioned again in 2 Timothy 4:11.  In Acts 12:11-15 there is a story about the disciple Peter calling at the house of Mark’s mother and Acts 15: 36-39 describes a disagreement between Paul and Mark. This Mark was therefore well-known to Paul and a generation younger so, if born around 30CE, he would have been about 45 when the gospel was written. He very likely met the disciple Peter who was with Paul in Antioch around 50CE when Mark was about 20. He was also known by Luke and other prominent followers of Paul so his story could have been circulated and copied. It is not credible, however, to suppose that this person invented the burial and resurrection story while everyone knew that it was false.

It has been suggested that Mark did not actually write the gospel attributed to him, but rather that he dictated his memories to others who recorded them, possibly adding their own thoughts for good measure. In this case, it is even more improbable that a coherent and believable story would result. Another possibility is that the story was already known before Mark’s gospel was written and he merely was the first to record it. In that case, Paul should have known about it and mentioned it since he died only about a decade previously. If the story had been gradually developing during Paul’s ministry, there would have been even more reason for him to comment on it.

So the conundrum remains that if the burial and resurrection story originated with Mark’s gospel, then who wrote it, but if it was previously known, then why does Paul not mention it?