Morton Smith and the Secret Gospel of Mark
What Smith found in 1958:
In the Mar Saba monastic library (near Jerusalem
--An early edition of writings of St. Ignatius of Antioch (printed)
--An 18th c. handwritten copy of a letter (in Greek) in the blank pages at the end
--A letter of St. Clement of Alexandria (ca. 200 C.E.
--Describing two gospels of Mark, one for everyone and one for the "spiritually advanced" with quotes from the second one
--That are not in the gospel of Mark we now have
What Smith did:
Photocopied the three pages but did not translate them
What the text says:
Letter is responding to questions about the Carpocratians, a Christian sect that claimed that "anything goes" (kind of like the Corinthians in Paul's letters)
Theology:
--All things are to be possessed in common (property, bodies)
--Souls trapped in bodies until bodies have every possible kind of experience
--Claim authority for these teachings in Mark, but Clement claims they have falsified and misinterpreted Mark
Clement's claims about Mark's gospel:
Mark based his gospel based on his acquaintance with Peter in Rome
In Alexandria Mark composed a second, "more spiritual" gospel
Carpocrates had a copy of this gospel, and had added some things to it
Three versions of Mark in Alexandria: canonical Mark, "secret" Mark, and Carpocratian Mark
Clement quotes two passages from "secret" Mark
The Significant Quote:
Jesus raises a young man from the dead, who comes to him later naked "with a linen cloth" and Jesus spend the night teaching him "the secrets of the Kingdom"
Relevant Data:
--There was a book containing letters of Ignatius
--Smith photographed the three pages at the end
--The letter is written in 18th century Greek script
--The writing style is like Clement
--The quotes are like Mark
--The letter was later cut out of the book and is missing