Philo in the context of "Romanization of Hebrew"

Play Trivia Questions online!

or

Skip to study material about Philo in the context of "Romanization of Hebrew"

Ad spacer

⭐ Core Definition: Philo

Philo of Alexandria (/ˈfl/; Ancient Greek: Φίλων, romanizedPhílōn; Hebrew: יְדִידְיָה, romanizedYəḏīḏyāh; c. 20 BCE – c.  50 CE), also called Philō Judæus, was a Hellenistic Jewish philosopher who lived in Alexandria, in the Roman province of Egypt.

The only event in Philo's life that can be decisively dated is his representation of the Alexandrian Jews in a delegation to the Roman emperor Caligula in 40 CE following civil strife between the Jewish and Greek communities of Alexandria.

↓ Menu

>>>PUT SHARE BUTTONS HERE<<<
In this Dossier

Philo in the context of Hellenistic Judaism

Hellenistic Judaism was a form of Judaism in classical antiquity that combined Jewish religious tradition with elements of Hellenistic culture and religion. Until the early Muslim conquests of the eastern Mediterranean, the main centers of Hellenistic Judaism were Alexandria in Egypt and Antioch in Syria (modern-day Turkey), the two main Greek urban settlements of the Middle East and North Africa, both founded in the end of the 4th century BCE in the wake of the conquests of Alexander the Great. Hellenistic Judaism also existed in Jerusalem during the Second Temple Period, where there was a conflict between Hellenizers and traditionalists.

The major literary product of the contact between Second Temple Judaism and Hellenistic culture is the Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Bible from Biblical Hebrew and Biblical Aramaic to Koine Greek, specifically, Jewish Koine Greek. Mentionable are also the philosophic and ethical treatises of Philo and the historiographical works of the other Hellenistic Jewish authors.

↑ Return to Menu

Philo in the context of The image of God

The "image of God" (Hebrew: צֶלֶם אֱלֹהִים, romanizedṣelem ʾĔlōhīm; Greek: εἰκών τοῦ Θεοῦ, romanizedeikón toú Theoú; Latin: imago Dei) is a concept and theological doctrine in Judaism and Christianity. It is a foundational aspect of Judeo-Christian belief with regard to the fundamental understanding of human nature. It stems from the primary text in Genesis 1:27, which reads (in the Authorized / King James Version): "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female he created them." The exact meaning of the phrase has been debated for millennia.

Following tradition, a number of Jewish scholars, such as Saadia Gaon and Philo, argued that being made in the image of God does not mean that God possesses human-like features, but rather the reverse: that the statement is figurative language for God bestowing special honour unto humankind, which he did not confer unto the rest of creation.

↑ Return to Menu

Philo in the context of Pontius Pilate

Pontius Pilate (Latin: Pontius Pilatus; Greek: Πόντιος Πιλᾶτος, romanizedPóntios Pilátos) was the fifth governor of the Roman province of Judaea, serving under Emperor Tiberius from 26/27 to 36/37 AD. He is best known for being the official who presided over the trial of Jesus and ultimately ordered his crucifixion. Pilate's importance in Christianity is underscored by his prominent place in both the Apostles' and Nicene Creeds. Because the gospels portray Pilate as reluctant to execute Jesus, the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church believes that Pilate became a Christian and venerates him as both a martyr and a saint, a belief which was also historically held by the Coptic Church.

Pontius Pilate is the best-attested figure to hold the position of Roman governor, though few sources about his rule have survived. Virtually nothing is known about his life prior to becoming governor or the circumstances of his appointment. Surviving evidence includes coins he minted and the Pilate Stone inscription. Ancient sources such as Josephus, Philo, and the Gospel of Luke document several incidents of conflict between Pilate and the Jewish population, often citing his insensitivity to Jewish religious customs. The Christian gospels, as well as Josephus and Tacitus, attribute the crucifixion of Jesus to Pilate’s orders.

↑ Return to Menu

Philo in the context of History of the Jews in Alexandria

The history of the Jews in Alexandria dates back to the founding of the city by Alexander the Great in 332 BCE. Jews in Alexandria played a crucial role in the political, economic, cultural and religious life of Hellenistic and Roman Alexandria, with Jews comprising about 35% of the city's population during the Roman era.

In the Ptolemaic period, Alexandrian Jews played a central role in the development of Hellenistic Judaism and were instrumental in the translation of the Torah from Hebrew to Koine Greek, which produced the Septuagint. Many important Jewish writers and figures came from or studied in Alexandria, such as Philo, Ben Sira, Tiberius Julius Alexander and Josephus. The position of Alexandria's Jewry began deteriorating during the Roman era, as deep antisemitic sentiment began developing amongst the city's Greek and Egyptian populations. This led to the subsequent Alexandrian pogrom in 38 CE and the Alexandria riot in 66 CE, which was in parallel with the outbreak of the First Jewish–Roman War. Alexandria's Jewry began to diminish, leading to a mass immigration of Alexandrian Jews to Rome, as well as other Mediterranean and North African cities. It appears that the Jewish community of Alexandria was completely eradicated by the end of the Diaspora Revolt in 117 CE, with various rabbinic legends associated with the final destruction of the community.

↑ Return to Menu

Philo in the context of Agraeus

Agraeus (Greek: Ἀγραῖος, Agraios) was the name of a number of personages from ancient myth, but was primarily known as an epithet of the god Apollo in Greek mythology, which meant "the hunter". After Apollo had killed the Lion of Cithaeron, a temple was erected to him by Alcathous, son of Pelops, at Megara under the name of Apollo Agraeus (some accounts report that Alcathous himself killed the lion). The epithet was also sometimes used, in the feminine form Agraea (or Agraia), for the goddess Artemis, which was synonymous with her epithet Agrotera.

There is also evidence, attested to by Philo, that "Agraeus" was a minor god-figure in the mythology of Phoenicia who invented hunting.

↑ Return to Menu