Called to Discipleship: Reflections on the Gospel of Mark

Drawing on Jesus's example in the Gospel of Mark, this book offers an in-depth exploration of the nature of discipleship. A tool to help readers draw close to Jesus, it presents discipleship as a way of life centred on the journey back to God - a journey that integrates the quest for salvation, wholeness, and human fulfilment. Ultimately, the invitation to discipleship is an invitation to live in obedience to God and commitment to our fellow human beings, as Christ calls his followers not only to their own transformation but to participate in the transformation of others. At a time when secular culture is rediscovering the benefits of discipleship, this book invites readers into a powerful experience of identity formation based on the values of Christ and his kingdom.

About the Author :
DĂNUȚ JEMNA has a PhD in theology from Babeș-Bolyai University of Cluj-Napoca, Romania, as well as a PhD in statistics and sampling research from Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iași, Romania, where he has been teaching for over twenty-five years. The founding pastor of an evangelical church in Iași, he retired from pastoral ministry in 2018 so he could pursue research and writing on current issues affecting Christian life.

Review :
As followers of Christ find themselves in increasingly challenging contexts brought about by more secular, multicultural, and multireligious cultures, discipling believers has also become an urgent need. In his book, Called to Discipleship, Dănuț Jemna introduces us to a fresh and dynamic perspective of discipleship for changing times. Otniel Bunaciu, PhD Professor of Historical Theology, Dean of Facultatea de Teologie Baptista, Universitatea din Bucuresti, Romania The costly art of discipleship - as a commitment and a way of life, not a methodology or a programme - has become rare in our Christian communities. Dănuț Jemna's book invites us to take a fresh look at the way Jesus went about making disciples as an inspiration for rediscovering this vital practice for the followers of Christ in the twenty-first century. Dănuț Mănăstireanu, PhD Research Associate, Institute for Orthodox Research Studies, University of Cambridge, UK The verb mathēteuō (to make disciples) from the great post-Paschal commandment of Jesus (Matt 28:19) is an imperative not to reflect on discipleship, as a state that defines Christian identity, but to go out into the world and make disciples of Jesus. This book, by what it tells us is a step, mine and yours, towards the world where people await us as missionaries. That's why after you read it, it doesn't close! It always remains open for you to see where you are in the "work of discipleship." So don't close it! Stelian Tofană, PhD Professor of New Testament, Faculty of Orthodox Theology, Universitatea din Bucuresti, Romania