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Philo of Alexandria, the great 2nd-century AD Jewish philosopher and theologian, is a key figure in the history of thought. With him the Judaeo-Christian and the Greek traditions converge and meet for the first time, and he also stands at the beginning of the revival of Platonic thought known as Middle Platonism. In these articles David Runia has aimed, first, to provide a guide for research and a context for understanding the enormous mass of writings Philo has left. He has then sought to investigate further Philo's place in the history of Platonic thought and to trace aspects of his influence on the later development of Christian theology. His primary concern, however, is to examine the relationship between scriptural exegesis and philosophy in Philo's work. He argues that one cannot pursue Philo's thought without fully taking into account its exegetical context, and therefore that an understanding of how he undertakes to present this exegesis is of paramount importance.
Samuel Sandmel's book: Philo of Alexandria: An Introduction, is a basic introductory, supplementing his own teacher' Goodenough: 'An Introduction to Philo Judaeus, ' and foundation to more recent works on Philo.
In the treatise On the Change of Names (part of his magnum opus, the Allegorical Commentary), Philo of Alexandria brings his figurative exegesis of the Abraham cycle to its fruition. Taking a cue from Platonist interpreters of Homer's Odyssey, Philo reads Moses's story of Abraham as an account of the soul's progress and perfection. Responding to contemporary critics, who mocked Genesis 17 as uninspired, Philo finds instead a hidden philosophical reflection on the ineffability of the transcendent God, the transformation of souls which recognize their mortal nothingness, the possibility of human faith enabled by peerless faithfulness of God, and the fruit of moral perfection: joy divine, prefigured in the birth of Isaac.
Jean Danielou's 'Philo of Alexandria' illuminates the life and work of a key figure in the history of religious thought. Philo of Alexandria was a first-century Hellenistic Jewish philosopher who was born into a wealthy and prominent family in Alexandria, in the Roman province of Egypt. Educated in both Jewish culture and Greek philosophy, Philo believed that literal interpretations of the Hebrew Bible would distort the Jewish people's perceptions of a God too complex to be understood in literal, human terms. He became one of the first religious thinkers to initiate a strong allegorical reading of Scripture. Jean Danielou places Philo's writing in context, detailing the remarkable events of the philosopher's life, including a diplomatic mission to present himself before the Roman Emperor Caligula on behalf of the persecuted Jews of Alexandria. James Colbert's English translation provides a highly accessible introduction to this important figure, a pioneer of biblical commentary whose work has had a lasting influence on Christian theology. It is essential reading for those interested in patristics, exegesis, or the history of religious and philosophical thought.
In this new English translation and commentary of Philo’s On the Life of Abraham Ellen Birnbaum and John Dillon show how and why this unique biography displays Philo’s philosophical, exegetical, and literary genius at its best.
Philo (20BCE?-45CE?) is the most illustrious son of Alexandrian Jewry and the first major scholar to combine a deep Jewish learning with Greek philosophy. His unique allegorical exegesis of the Greek Bible was to have a profound influence on the early fathers of the Church. Philo was, above all, a philosopher, but he was also intensely practical in his defence of the Jewish faith and law in general, and that of Alexandria’s embattled Jewish community in particular. A famous example was his leadership of a perilous mission to plead the community’s cause to Emperor Caligula. This monograph provides a guide to Philo's life, his thought and his action, as well as his continuing influence on theological and philosophical thought.
De Vita Contemplativa is known for its depiction of a philosophical group of Jewish men and women known as the ‘Therapeutae’. This commentary sets the treatise in its historical context and explores Philo’s aims in depicting them as he did.
A collection of papers designed as a companion volume to the author's monograph "Philo in Early Christian Literature: A Survey" (1993). The papers deal with various aspects of how Philo's writings and thought were received at the hands of the Church Fathers.
This book presents a new English translation of and philological-historical commentary on Philo's In Flaccum, the only document extant that deals with the anti-Jewish pogrom in Alexandria in 38 CE.