“Now a certain young man followed Him, having a linen cloth thrown around his naked body. And the young men laid hold of him, and he left the linen cloth and fled from them naked.” (Mark 14:51-52)

“Now a certain young man followed Him, having a linen cloth thrown around his naked body. And the young men laid hold of him, and he left the linen cloth and fled from them naked.” (Mark 14:51-52)

During the moment of Christ’s arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, great chaos ensued. In the darkness, Temple guards, Roman soldiers, Pharisees, and others were all trying to lay hold of Jesus. Add into the mix the confusion and terror of the disciples as they choose to flee, rather than stand firm with their Master. Yet one interesting fact is recorded, but only in Mark’s gospel account: the boy who was seized but wrestles out of his clothing and ran away naked.

The identity of the man is unknown, but since Mark is the only gospel that mentions the incident, many Bible scholars speculate that the young man was John Mark himself, the author of this gospel.

Fr. John