Secret Mark: Its Discovery and the State of Research”, The Expository Times

Secret Mark remains one of the most controversial and enigmatic texts relating to the New Testament that has been discovered in the last century. Accusations of forgery as well as acrimonious debate have often characterized the discussion. For those unfamiliar with Secret Mark, this article describes details of its discovery and contents, then looks at the current state of research into this document. This is followed by a review of two recent monographs, which arrive at startlingly divergent conclusions. 1. Discovery For those who enjoy a good conspiracy theory, the discovery of the text known as Secret Mark seems to have all the necessary ingredients. A dusty manuscript unearthed in the back of a seventeenth-century book, in an Orthodox monastery in the Holy Land, by one of the most controversial New Testament scholars of the twentieth century. The discussion that followed the publication of the manuscript is shrouded in accusations of forgery and claims that it undermines the traditional account of Christian origins. Then, perhaps thirty years after the discovery, the manuscript disappeared. One may well think that this even has the potential to become a Hollywood script, but perhaps here is a case where the fiction surrounding Secret Mark is actually stranger than the fact