Required reading
Ante-Nicene Fathers (Volume 3) (Available from Amazon or free here) - Read Book I of 'The five books against Marcion'.
My summary
This week Tertullian argues against the theology of Marcion.
Firstly Tertullian discusses Marcion's misunderstanding of:
(i) God's supremacy;
(ii) natural revelation of God;
(iii) special revelation of God;
(iv) Christ and Paul;
(v) the goodness of God;
(vi) the justice of God;
(vii) baptism;
(viii) marriage.
What grabbed me
Tertullian painted a terrible picture of Marcion's 'god': 'Again, he [Marcion's god] plainly judges evil by not willing it, and condemns it by prohibiting it; while, on the other hand, he acquits it by not avenging it, and lets it go free by not punishing it. What a prevaricator of truth is such a god! What a dissembler with his own decision! Afraid to condemn what he really condemns, afraid to hate what he does not love, permitting that to be done which he does not allow, choosing to indicate what he dislikes rather than deeply examine it! This will turn out an imaginary goodness, a phantom of discipline, perfunctory in duty, careless in sin. Listen, ye sinners; and ye who have not yet come to this, hear, that you may attain to such a pass! A better god has been discovered, who never takes offence, is never angry, never inflicts punishment, who has prepared no fire in hell, no gnashing of teeth in the outer darkness! He is purely and simply good. He indeed forbids all delinquency, but only in word. He is in you, if you are willing to pay him homage, for the sake of appearances, that you may seem to honour God; for your fear he does not want. And so satisfied are the Marcionites with such pretences, that they have no fear of their god at all. '
Who would care about such a god?
Next week's reading
Read Book II of 'The five books against Marcion'.
Now it's your turn
Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.
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