Biblical Criticism & History Forum - earlywritings.com

It might help if you put on your Marcionite goggles before you read it: "You have heard, no doubt, of my earlier life in Judaism (the Old-Testament religion of that judgy, vengeful god). I was violently persecuting the assembly of (the merciful, loving) God (of the New Testament) and was tryin...

There may not even have been a historical Simon. But that is really kind of beside the point for, as Richard Carrier, puts it: “The historicity of this Simon has been questioned, but the historicity of his worship as a divine being has not” (On the Historicity of Jesus, p. 71). So, if Satornilus an...

I suspect that Cerdo was a Simonian Christian of the Saturnilian variety, and that as much as 80% of the seven so-called authentic Paulines was actually the work of Saturnilians. Stepping back and avoiding specifics there are curious parallels between Pauline theology and that attributed to Satunil...

in imagining "simonians" they basically disappear into the mix of early christians (itself a name not used till later) what they believed hard to know, i suspect a classic mystic/esoteric bunch that were by no means violent seeing the futility of that route i further suspect their symbols ...

You’re confusing two different Simons. Simonians (including Basilides) worshipped a Simon whom they believed to be the Great Power of God. That’s where the name “Simonians” comes from. (Proto-orthodox Christians ridiculed that Simon by referring to him as a magician, i.e., Simon Magus). Simonians b...

Basilides is said to have held that Simon was “an incorporeal power and the ‘Nous’ (Mind) of the unborn Father.” (Irenaeus, Against Heresies, 1.23.4). That’s not complimentary enough? He appeared, then, on earth as a man, to the nations of these powers, and wrought miracles. Wherefore he did not hi...

one issue is Basilides doesn't seem to be a straight up Simonian it seems his doctrine isn't too complimentary toward Simon, and more interested in "freedom from the spirit rulers" drawing a distinction between these two doesn't really change what you're saying, it's just a nuance that sti...

GD i completely agree with you there's a chiasmic structure to the epistle teaching its hard not to see the resurrection as the ritual equivalent of 'being saved' so when humans 'are saved' that's a re-enactment of the resurrection that would tend to de-value the human Jesus... as a type of the unsa...

gMark is Pauline, thus is aware of the Unter/Uber Torah issues of Paul. But gMark is not an encyclopedic playbook of Paul's theology/dogma.[/list] heh this is how the "poor fit" the gospels have with Pauline theology gets waved away i'm open to an 'awareness' of things pauline but these d...

Why? I mean, why do you think this would be a problem? Paul himself clearly wasn't interested in Jesus's life, but I don't see that translating into his followers refusing to have any truck with learning more. All ok unless the teachings are not identical but if different... why would an epistle ch...