Secret Mark

An alternative version of the gospel of Mark, allegedly quoted in a letter by an early Christian writer called Clement of Alexandria. The gospel is said to be an ‘improvement' on the basic one found in the Bible. It's said to contain secret teachings of Jesus that were only passed on to ‘advanced' Christians.

The publication of the letter in 1973 CE was controversial because it suggested that the Jesus movement may have originally had homosexual undertones. Some biblical scholars believe that Mark did write a more developed version of his gospel. Others however, argue at length that either Clement's letter was a modern-day fraud or that ‘Secret Mark' was a much later invention by a Gnostic group.