Philo of Alexandria
PlatonistEclectic
The Jewish philosopher who read the Torah through Greek eyes and gave the West its idea of the Logos as the bridge between God and world.
Philo lived in the great Jewish community of Alexandria and set himself a task that would echo for two thousand years: to show that the God of Moses and the reason of the Greeks were one. Reading scripture allegorically, he found Plato's Forms in Genesis and Stoic logic in the Law. Between the unknowable God and the created world he placed the Logos, the divine reason through which the world is made and known — a notion that would shape Christian theology and Neoplatonism alike. He once led an embassy to the emperor Caligula on behalf of his people, and lived to write about its failure.
Places
Ideas
Words
“The Logos is the image of God, and through it the whole world was framed.”
Works
Life & Moments
Born in Alexandria
Born into the great Jewish community of Alexandria, schooled in both the Torah and Greek philosophy.
Embassy to Caligula
Led a Jewish delegation to the emperor Caligula in Rome to plead against persecution, and later wrote of its failure.
Influence
Influenced by
- Plato
Philo read the Torah through Platonic eyes, finding the Forms in Genesis and fusing the God of Moses with Greek reason.
