Here is a reconstruction of Marcus’ teaching from *Against Heresies* (Book I, Chapter 14), with all of Irenaeus’ negative judgments removed. I have expanded it into a clean, coherent teaching narrative of about 1,000 words.
---
# The Teaching of Marcus on Letters, Syllables, and the Mystery of the Name
Marcus, having received from the heights of the invisible regions the revelation of the ineffable mysteries, declared himself to be the matrix and receptacle of the Sige of Colorbasus. To him alone, he said, the exalted Tetrad descended in the form of a woman, for the world could not have borne her coming in a male form. She revealed to him the origin of all things, which had never before been disclosed to gods or to men.
## The Revelation of the Word
According to Marcus, when the unbegotten and inconceivable Father, beyond male and female, willed to manifest the ineffable and give form to what was invisible, He opened His mouth and uttered the Word. This Word, similar to Himself, stood near Him and revealed to Him His own likeness, being the manifestation of the invisible in visible form.
The Father then spoke His Name in four utterances. The first consisted of four letters, the second likewise of four, the third of ten, and the fourth of twelve. Thus the whole Name contained thirty letters and four distinct pronunciations. Each letter had its own form, image, and character. Yet each element, though part of the whole, imagined itself to be the entirety of the Name. They did not perceive one another’s forms, but only their own sound.
The restitution of all things, Marcus taught, would take place when all these letters were joined into one, uttering one unified sound. This mystery is prefigured in the word *Amen*, which all pronounce together in harmony. The diverse sounds of the letters are the forms of that eternal Æon, whom the Lord Himself called “angels” who continually behold the face of the Father.
## The Æons and the Ecclesia
The names of these elements Marcus called Æons, roots, seeds, words, fullnesses, and fruits. He declared that all of them were contained in the Name *Ecclesia*. The last letter of the final utterance sent forth its own sound, which generated further elements in the likeness of the first. Through this process both the heavenly realities and the things below were brought into order.
Each letter itself was made of other letters, and these again of still others, so that the multitude of letters extends infinitely. For example, the word *Delta* contains five letters—D, E, L, T, A—yet each of these letters is spelled by others, and so on without end. If even one letter expands infinitely, then the whole Name of the Father is an immeasurable ocean of letters.
Because of this, Marcus declared, no single element could utter the whole. Each could only sound forth its own portion. Thus the Father, knowing His incomprehensible nature, assigned to each element its own utterance, so that all together might express His fullness.
## The Body of Truth
The Tetrad then said to Marcus: *“I wish to show you Aletheia herself, unveiled, that you may behold her beauty and hear her wisdom.”*
She revealed Aletheia, Truth, in human form:
* Her head on high, Alpha and Omega
* Her neck, Beta and Psi
* Her shoulders and hands, Gamma and Chi
* Her breast, Delta and Phi
* Her diaphragm, Epsilon and Upsilon
* Her back, Zeta and Tau
* Her belly, Eta and Sigma
* Her thighs, Theta and Rho
* Her knees, Iota and Pi
* Her legs, Kappa and Omicron
* Her ankles, Lambda and Xi
* Her feet, Mu and Nu
This is the body of Truth, the figure of the element, the character of the letters. Marcus called this form *Anthropos*, the fountain of speech, the beginning of sound, the mouth of Sige, and the expression of the unspeakable.
The Tetrad urged him: *“Elevate your thoughts and listen from the mouth of Truth to the self-begotten Word, who dispenses the bounty of the Father.”*
## The Name of Jesus
Aletheia then opened her mouth and spoke a word, a Name: *Christ Jesus.* After speaking, she fell silent. The Tetrad explained: *“This word which you have heard is not to be taken lightly. You know the sound, but not the power. The name Jesus, consisting of six letters, is known to the called; yet within the Pleroma its form and figure contain many parts, and it is known fully only to those joined to Him in affinity.”*
## The Mystery of the Letters
Marcus taught that the twenty-four letters of the Greek alphabet are symbolic emanations of three powers. The nine mute letters correspond to Pater and Aletheia, being voiceless and ineffable. The semi-vowels correspond to Logos and Zoe, standing midway between mute and vowel. The vowels correspond to Anthropos and Ecclesia, since the voice of Anthropos gave being to them all.
Thus, Logos and Zoe are represented by eight letters, Anthropos and Ecclesia by seven, and Pater and Aletheia by nine. To equalize the divisions, He who came from the Father descended to rectify the arrangement, so that each division became an Ogdoad, and the whole twenty-four letters balanced in unity. The doubling of certain letters brought the total to thirty, corresponding to the Pleroma.
## The Mystery of Six and Eight
Marcus declared that the manifestation of these mysteries appeared in Him who ascended the mountain after six days with three others, making the sixth. This one descended as the Ogdoad, containing within Himself all the elements. When He was baptized, the descent of the dove, whose number is 801 (Alpha and Omega), revealed His fullness.
For this reason man was formed on the sixth day, and again, on the sixth day—preparation—the last man appeared for the regeneration of the first. At the sixth hour He was nailed to the tree, showing the power of the number six in formation and regeneration. The Episemon (the sixth letter, the numeral “6”) joined to the twenty-four letters made the thirty-lettered Name complete.
## The Seven Powers and the Soul of the World
The Sige of Marcus declared that the world was formed by seven powers, the Hebdomad, which are the soul of all that is visible. Each heaven utters a vowel sound: Alpha, Epsilon, Eta, Iota, Omicron, Upsilon, and Omega. These together sound out the glory of Him who produced them, their praise ascending to the Propator.
The sound of this praise, descending to earth, became the parent of all earthly things. Proof of this was found in the cries of newborn infants, whose first sounds mirror the vowels of the heavens. Thus David wrote: *“Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings You have perfected praise”* and again, *“The heavens declare the glory of God.”*
When the soul is in distress, it cries “O!” in recognition of Omega, calling upon its heavenly counterpart for aid.
## The Completion of the Name
The entire Name of the Father, consisting of thirty letters, was reflected in the body of Aletheia, composed of twelve members. Each part contained two letters. The unuttered voice of Aletheia expressed the hidden mystery.
Bythus, the Depth, was increased by these letters. From them the whole arrangement of the Pleroma and the soul of the world received its order.
Marcus taught that when the Tetrad revealed these things, nothing remained concealed. The mysteries of letters, names, and sounds were unveiled as the path of ascent into the knowledge of the Propator.
---
### Conclusion
Marcus’ teaching presented a vast symbolic theology of letters, names, and sounds. The thirty-lettered Name, the Ogdoad, the Tetrad, and the Hebdomad all expressed the descent of divine powers into the world and their ascent back into unity. The body of Truth, Aletheia, revealed the form of Anthropos, fountain of all speech. Through the mysteries of six and eight, of vowels and consonants, and of the Name Jesus, Marcus proclaimed the great ordering of the Pleroma and the redemption of the soul through knowledge of the ineffable.
---
Would you like me to **export this into a formatted Word (.docx) document** so you can have the reconstructed teaching ready for study or sharing?
No comments:
Post a Comment