Jesus, Prophet of Islam - The Islamic Bulletin

52 Jesus, Prophei ofIslam

historians that the Last Supper was held in the house of Barnabas's
sister - although it must be remembered that, as we have aIready
seen, Barnabas states that it took place 'in the house of Nicodemus
beyond the brook Cedron', which was on the outskirts of [erusa­
lem. Albert Schweitzer, however, who may not have had access to
the Gospel of Barnabas, in his book The Kingdom of God and Primi­
tive Christian Belief writes:

It may be inferred from the Acts that the disciples and

the believers from Galilee met in the house of the mother

of John Mark, who later accompanied Barnabas and Paul

on the First Missionary [ourney (Acts 12:25) ...The meet­

ing place of the believers was the 'upper room', which

means the room situated immediately under the fiat roof

(Acts 1: 12-14).lt musthavebeena largeone tohold the

entire company. It was in this room that the believers

were 'all together in one place' on the day of Pentecost

(Acts 2: 1). How did it come to be identified with the

one in which Jesus celebrated the Last Supper with the

disciples?

When Jesus sent two disciples from Bethany to the

city with instructions to prepare the Passover meaI for

him, he told them that they were to follow a man who

would meet them with a pitcher of water. He would

lead them to a house with a large upper room furnished

withrugs, wheretheywereto preparethe meaI. Weowe

this vaIuable piece of information to the Gospel of Mark

(Mark 14: 13-15), which rests on a tradition going back

to John Mark. Matthew only relates that Jesus sent the

two disciples with directions to inform someone in the

city, 'The Master saith, "My time is at hand; 1 keep the

Passover at thy house with my disciples," (Matthew 26:

8). Theodore Zahn was one of the first to put forward

the view that the house of the last meal of Jesus with his

disciples was identical withthat of John Mark's mother,

in which the disciples met together with the believers

from Galilee. 1

Although Schweitzer says the house was that of John Mark's

mother,he does notremindusthatMark's motherwasthesisterof

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