Marcion also was able to develop a following in Rome between 140-150 because of theological toleration. Marcion (From Sinope in northern Turkey, 110-160) was active in Rome from 140-150. Hippolytus claims he was a son of the bishop of Sinope, and was at one time ordained as a bishop himself. By trade, Marcion was a ship-owner, specifically a naukleros. Under Trajan (d. 117) there was almost non-stop war, and shipowners were pressed into service of the government. This was such a problem that by the time of Hadrian (d. 138) most of these demands were reversed and benefits given to shipowners (specifically, freedom from municipal liturgies). Lampe suggests that “under Hadrian, the situation of a shipowner was at its best” (242).
Marcion was therefore a wealthy man, and when he came to Rome he gave the church 200,000 sesterces. This was the value of a small manor in Rome at the time (Marital 3.52), or a middle sized farm. The amount needed to buy into the equestrian rank at the time was 400,000. This was therefore a sizable contribution!
That he was a naukleros helps to explain why he was in Rome with time available to write and debate theology. The naukleros was the owner of the ships, but he did not necessarily need to travel with them, he is not a “sailor” or a “captain,” he is the wealthy company owner. This also gives him opportunity to travel and spread his theology after he leaves Rome in 150. This money was returned to him when he was excommunicated, possibly financing the spread of his theology to other areas.
While often styled as a gnostic in secondary literature, Marcion was a biblicist who “barricaded himself with a canon of scripture” (Lampe). His theology was motivated by defining what scripture was authoritative (Paul, and his version of Luke); he also represents a complete break with Judaism in that he rejected the Hebrew Bible entirely. He allegorized what scripture he did retain.
There is no spirit of Hellenism in his work at all! He appears to have had no training as a philosopher or as a rhetorician. Gager has argued that Marcion’s rejection of allegory is an indication of philosophical training, but this misses the point since many philosophers in the second century were allegorizing Plato and Homer. Marcion’s theology was motivated by the Problem of Evil, but his answer is nothing at all like one might find in the contemporary philosophical schools on the issue. His arguments indicate that he had no formal philosophical training.
The real problem was how to deal with Marcion. Obviously what he taught was not “orthodox,” his Bible was not what the rest of the churches used, and his view of God and Jesus was completely out of step with the church and scripture. But there was no real “central authority” which could act to silence Marcion. The heresy of Marcion was a factor leading to the development of a monarchic bishop in Rome.