If I can prove in my academic paper that the "redemption" ritual of the Marcosians was related to the ritual castration which accompanied Marcionite baptisms (think Origen) then something amazing happens. The entire case against Morton Smith falls to the ground.
Why so?
Because the entire "naked man and naked man" reference in To Theodore has NOTHING to do with homosexuality. It is a reference to ritual castration.
Smith was gay. The argument against his discovery is that "there is something fishy" or "queer" about a homosexual discovering a text which alludes to homosexuality in the early Church.
But just having "naked man and naked man" spotted together on a starry night doesn't necessarily imply improper sexual relations were going on between them. There might have been something far worse, something illegal and wholly forbidden by contemporary society going on.
Just ask Matthew McConaughey ...
