Saint Mark. Mark the Evangelist is the traditionally ascribed author of the Gospel of Mark. Mark is said to have founded the Church of Alexandria, one of the most important episcopal sees of early Christianity. His feast day is celebrated on April 25, and his symbol is the winged lion. According to William Lane, an unbroken tradition identifies Mark the Evangelist with John Mark, and John Mark as the cousin of Barnabas. However, Hippolytus of Rome in On the Seventy Apostles distinguishes Mark the Evangelist, John Mark, and Mark the cousin of Barnabas. According to Hippolytus, they all belonged to the Seventy Disciples who were sent out by Jesus to disseminate the gospel in Judea. According to Eusebius of Caesarea, Herod Agrippa I, in his first year of reign over the whole of Judea, killed James, son of Zebedee and arrested Peter, planning to kill him after the Passover. Peter was saved miraculously by angels, and escaped out of the realm of Herod. Peter went to Antioch, then through Asia Minor, and arrived in Rome in the second year of Emperor Claudius. Somewhere on the way, Peter encountered Mark and took him as travel companion and interpreter. Mark the Evangelist wrote down the sermons of Peter, thus composing the Gospel according to Mark, before he left for Alexandria in the third year of Claudius. According to the Acts 15:39, Mark went to Cyprus with Barnabas after the Council of Jerusalem. According to tradition, in AD 49, about 19 years after the Ascension of Jesus, Mark travelled to Alexandria and founded the Church of Alexandria-today, the Coptic Orthodox Church, the Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria, and the Coptic Catholic Church claim to be successors to this original community. Aspects of the Coptic liturgy can be traced back to Mark himself. He became the first bishop of Alexandria and he is honored as the founder of Christianity in Africa. According to Eusebius, Mark was succeeded by Annianus as the bishop of Alexandria in the eighth year of Nero, probably, but not definitely, due to his coming death. Later Coptic tradition says that he was martyred in 68. Bart D. Ehrman argues the Gospel of Mark was written by an anonymous author, rather than direct witnesses to the reported events. Evidence for Mark the Evangelist's authorship of the Gospel that bears his name originates with Papias. Scholars of the Trinity Evangelical Divinity School are almost certain that Papias is referencing John Mark. Catholic scholars have argued that identifying Mark the Evangelist with John Mark and Mark the Cousin of Barnabas has led to the downgrading of the character of Barnabas from truly a Son of Comfort to one who favored his blood relative over principles. Identifying Mark the Evangelist with John Mark also led to identifying him as the man who carried water to the house where the Last Supper took place, or as the young man who ran away naked when Jesus was arrested. The Coptic Church accords with identifying Mark the Evangelist with John Mark, as well as that he was one of the Seventy Disciples sent out by Christ, as Hippolytus confirmed. Coptic tradition also holds that Mark the Evangelist hosted the disciples in his house after Jesus' death, that the resurrected Jesus Christ came to Mark's house, and that the Holy Spirit descended on the disciples at Pentecost in the same house. Furthermore, Mark is also believed to have been among the servants at the Marriage at Cana who poured out the water that Jesus turned to wine. According to the Coptic tradition, Mark was born in Cyrene, a city in the Pentapolis of North Africa. This tradition adds that Mark returned to Pentapolis later in life, after being sent by Paul to Colossae, and serving with him in Rome; from Pentapolis he made his way to Alexandria. When Mark returned to Alexandria, the pagans of the city resented his efforts to turn the Alexandrians away from the worship of their traditional gods. In AD 68, they placed a rope around his neck and dragged him through the streets until he was dead. The Feast of St Mark is observed on April 25 by the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches. For those Churches still using the Julian Calendar, April 25 according to it aligns with May 8 on the Gregorian Calendar until the year 2099. The Coptic Orthodox Church observes the Feast of St Mark on Parmouti 30 according to the Coptic Calendar which always aligns with April 25 on the Julian Calendar. Where John Mark is distinguished from Mark the Evangelist, John Mark is celebrated on September 27 and Mark the Evangelist on April 25.