Philo of Alexandria - Books and Journals

critical studies 2004 289
reviews the political situation in 1st century Alexandria and discusses Philo’s
life, character, works, intended audiences, and ideas. Philo’s ideas about God,
virtue, and the Jews constitute the vision which informed his teachings. Central
to the imagining of Philo as a leader is an understanding of his different
intended audiences because these audiences may indicate whom he influenced
or wished to influence. The section entitled ‘Philo’s Messages to Different
Groups’ presents Philonic teachings that might have been directed toward a
mixed group of Jews and non-Jews, Jews alone, the Alexandrian Jewish community
specifically, and Philo’s own inner circle of like-minded Jews. In discussing
Moses, Joseph, and Pharaoh, Philo reflects the leadership qualities that
he did and did not value. Although he wished to reach a broad audience, Philo
was probably most influential with the philosophically sophisticated Jews in his
own circle, and his works were neglected by later Jews for centuries. Nonetheless
his writings reveal his pride in and commitment to the entire Jewish nation.
(EB)
20412.M.Böhm,‘AbrahamunddieErzväterbeiPhilo:Hermeneutische
Überlegungen zur Konzeption der Arbeit am CJHNT,’ in R. Deines
and K.-W. Niebuhr (edd.), Philo und das Neue Testament: Wechselseitige
Wahrnehmungen. 1. Internationales Symposium zum Corpus Judaeo-
Hellenisticum Novi Testamenti (Eisenach/Jena, Mai 2003),Wissenschaftliche
Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament 172 (Tübingen 2004) 377–
395.
The article presents central reflections from the author’s Habilitation thesis
Rezeption und Funktion der Vätererzählungen bei Philo von Alexandrien (Berlin
2005), summarized below as 20511. The study forms part of the larger German
research project Corpus Judaeo-Hellenisticum Novi Testamenti in Jena. The figure
of Moses is an example for Philo’s exegeses of the patriarchs and matriarchs
of Israel in his writings. The author shows that Philo is an independent writer,
but she also underlines the independence of the three exegetical parts of his writings
(Exposition of the Law, Allegorical Commentary and the Quaestiones). She
includes in her analysis direct exegesis of the texts but also the more paraphrased
thematic characterizations of the patriarchs (esp. Abr. 90–98). These passages
show a clear orientation towards interested non-Jewish outsiders: only vague
ideas about the contents of Scripture are taken for granted. (GS)
20413. D.Boyarin,‘ByWayofApology:Dawson,Edwards,Origen,’
The Studia Philonica Annual 16 (2004) 188–217, esp. 196–202, 208–211.
Philo’s understanding of the theoretical epistemological problem posed by
Gorgias, that truth is contingent on speakers, hearers and situations, and his
proposed solution are seen to be an important model for Origen. (KAF)