Some of you know that I have been studying religion – most religions – as a hobby. I have read most of the “holy scriptures” of most of the world’s religions, living, dead, or dying. So it was interesting to me when various videos and documents started to flood my awareness of the Gospel of Marcion, presumed to be the world’s first Christian “Bible”.
I read everything I could find. I watched the scholars’ videos on YouTube. It was getting pretty exciting. Here is a version of the religion of Jesus which has no contradictions, only one Evangelion (not the 4 of the canonical Bible nor the 20+ documents which were rejected as “gospels” by various liturgical councils).
It was starting to sound like there might be something here. The Evangelion itself appears to consist of an early version of what we call Mark, plus all the verifiable letters of Paul. A few scholars seem to think that Marcion edited Mark, but most agree that the parts of Mark which are not here were added later. And most of the scholars I’ve read or listened to agree that all the letters of Paul which are not included in Marcion’s gospel have been thought to be written by other authors, not Paul, but attempt to stand on Paul’s “shoulders” to be better heard.
Then I started watching the videos produced by the current Marcionite Christian Church (based in Dominican Republic!), and started hearing things.
The primary difference between Marcionite Christianity and all other versions of Christianity is the belief that Jesus’ Father was NOT the god of the Jews. The viewpoint that the god of the Torah and Prophets (aka Old Testament to Christians), who had the Hebrews comit murder and genocide and all kinds of evil doings, could not possibly be the same as the god who sent Jesus to teach love and acceptance.
That could be good, or that could be bad. The most obvious potential evil is that it could promote hatred of the people who followed the Torah. As if we need any more hating of people in this world. And the more I listened to the videos from the present-day Marcionite organization, obviously a reconstruction and not a direct line of descent from the original church, the more I heard the sneering tone which the narrator used every time they said the word “Jew”.
It is a shame that a religion who rejects a false god for his apparently hatefulness would, rather than adopt the love being taught in their gospel, direct their hatred toward the followers of the older god. As it is my intention to accept everyone as they are, I cannot accept or tolerate this hatred.
Nobody beieves we have the entire Marcionite Evangelion. Most scholars believe the current document is only about 45-55% of what was originally contained (4500 words out of a potential 8000). To my mind, it would be fallacy at best and ignorance at worst to use this incomplete account for any serious purpose, good or ill.
That’s where I stand on this issue.
Moss
We are not here to earn God's love, we are here to spend it!