Now in paperback, Wills's acclaimed book presents a new way of relating the history of the city through its art and, in turn, illuminates the art through the city's history. Illustrated with more than 130 works of art, 30 in full color.

The earliest of the four Gospels, the book portrays Jesus as an enigmatic figure, struggling with enemies, his inner and external demons, and with his devoted but disconcerted disciples. Unlike other gospels, his parables are obscure, to be explained secretly to his followers. With an introduction by Nick Cave

Drama. Irony. Betrayal. Miracles. A holy war with the whole world at stake. And it’s all packed into the shortest of the four Gospels. Written in an engaging, lively, oral style, Loosing the Lion tells us how, despite being misunderstood and neglected throughout most of history, the Gospel of Mark has recently been experiencing a scholarly revival. Theologians are beginning to see how it is actually an intense, wild, impossible story told at a breakneck pace with twists and turns that shock and surprise those with eyes to see and ears to hear. Readers will be captivated by the Gospel’s literary brilliance, which brings us to the threshold of an encounter with the living Jesus, who reveals his mysteries, and ultimately himself, to those who approach him and dwell in his presence. And when we do encounter him, “The proper response is repentance, joining God’s army to be liberated, and once liberated, advancing the liberation of the whole cosmos, which, ultimately, is the content of the Gospel Jesus calls us to believe in. Liberation is coming. Join the resistance.”

The story begins in the period immediately after the lifetime of Jesus when as yet there were no written accounts of any sort, but the tradition about him was preserved entirely by word of mouth. So far as the material in our Gospels is concerned, it was preserved during this period exclusively by Christians. Although St. Mark was no biographer, by linking together the various separate stories and groups of stories with summary passages of his own composition, he has produced what is, so far as its form is concerned, a connected historical narrative. It tells of the Lord's baptism by John the Baptist, of a subsequent varied ministry in Galilee, of some journeys outside Galilee ending with a journey to Jerusalem, and finally of a series of events -- the entry upon the ass, the cleansing of the temple, the scene in the treasury, and the like -- which must obviously have taken place in Jerusalem. - Introduction.

The Lion of Saint Mark, representing Mark the Evangelist, pictured in the form of a winged lion holding a Bible, is the symbol of the city of Venice and formerly of the Venetian Republic.

Venetian art - Venice - Themes and motives - Narrative painting Renaissance Italy.