Why the Messianic Secret? Because of fear of authorities

[Giuseppe]

I had believed that the Messianic Secret had behind itself a mere theological reason. But the reason may be political: mere fear of making it too much explicit that Jesus is the (Jewish) Christ.

Evidence of this is that, while in Mark Jesus proclaims himself Christ only before the high priest, in the fourth Gospel, where Jesus is from the beginning someone who works de facto as Messiah (I mean: as a powerful being, since I can't assume that proto-John was judaizer, even if surely the his editor was one), there the proclamation of messianic status before the high priest is missing at all.

This may be a reason to date Mark in Bar-Kokhba's era, when the term "Christ" was too much filled of political implications, hence the need of top secrecy about the messianic status of Jesus.

The same fear of authorities could be overcame rapidly by the Gnostics: why should they risk the persecution by authorities when they didn't adore the Jewish Messiah? It is better proclaim the exact contrary: that Jesus is not the Christ.

[Giuseppe]

Note that Josephus also, never mentions the title of Christ for the seditious messianists (someone claims: by fear). I am assuming obviously that any occurrence of "Christ" in Josephus is a later Christian interpolation.

[Giuseppe]

A reason to make Bar-Abbas (the Marcionite "Son of Father") escape, is precisely because the Gnostics had no intention to suffer persecution by proclaiming the identity "Son of Father = the Jewish Christ".

[Giuseppe]

I insist: also in Josephus there is a "Messianic Secret" in action, for fear of authorities.