Alternate (and Ignored) History of the Marcionites

[Secret Alias]

For it is evident that those men lived not so long ago,—in the reign of Antoninus for the most part,—and that they at first were believers in the doctrine of the Catholic Church, in the church of Rome under the episcopate of the blessed Eleutherus, until on account of their ever restless curiosity, with which they even infected the brethren, they were more than once expelled. Marcion, indeed, [went] with the two hundred sesterces which he had brought into the church, and, when banished at last to a permanent excommunication, they scattered abroad the poisons of their doctrines. Afterwards, it is true, Marcion professed repentance, and agreed to the conditions granted to him—that he should receive reconciliation if he restored to the church all the others whom he had been training for perdition: he was prevented, however, by death. It was indeed necessary that there should be heresies; and yet it does not follow from that necessity, that heresies are a good thing [Prescr Heres 30]

Eleuterius reigned 171 or 177 to 185 or 193. Antoninus Pius may be a mistake for Marcus Aurelius who ruled until 180 CE. Clearly these dates make it likely that the dates for Marcion correspond to the date of treatise written where Marcion is referenced in the present tense. The dates are non-historical. Marcionites are likely Roman Christians. Notice that Against Marcion Book 1 refers "the elder Antoninus" for Marcion's dating in the middle of the century.

[davidmartin]

SA,

"There were some of our religion whose faith was less established, or who were less learned or less cautious, who rent the unity and divided the Church. But they whose faith was unsettled, when they pretended that they knew and worshipped God, aiming at the increase of their wealth and honour, aspired to the highest sacerdotal power; and when overcome by others more powerful, preferred to secede with their supporters, than to endure those set over them, over whom they themselves before desired to be set."

He then mentions Marcion and others heresies who he says call themselves Christians

Lactantius, i think is more honest here about things and how it went down which is how it always does from human nature
Classic power struggle.. the Catholics proved they were better, more able and more apt to dominate the institutional body of the church
Whether that automatically means they were right or more right than anyone else, that's a matter of opinion! But i can't read his quote about 'wealth and honour' without thinking how that fits his own party like a papal glove
It is all a long, long way from 1st century Galilee
Somewhere along this trail i suspect lies a great injustice that we are never going to know

[Secret Alias]

If this were the only case where those closest to secular authorities won out in history it would be an injustice. But the reality is - those who eschew flattering worldly authorities always lose. It is an interesting feature of the earliest Samaritan chronologies that Jewish authorities managed to get close to the immediate circle around Muhammad. The idea that a tradition like Marcion's which rejected worldliness would some how triumph in the world is almost laughably naive.