Books in Brief

006

Philo of Alexandria

Samuel Sandmel

(Oxford University Press, 1979) 104 pp. $12.95

In the early first century A.D. in Alexandria, as in the rest of the Greco-Roman world, Hellenism and Judaism had blended together; Philo Judaeus embodied this mixture.

In this new book, Samuel Sandmel reviews the life and writings of Philo, a member of the thriving Jewish community of Alexandria, which at the time exceeded the size of the Jewish population in Judea. Philo was a prolific writer; today his works fill 13 volumes in the Loeb Classical Library (Harvard University Press) and inform us about the evolution of synagogue Judaism and the development of early Christianity.

Philo’s writings are quite unlike Rabbinic literature, which developed during his lifetime. He wrote on many topics: theology, political theory, ethics, Bible, often using allegory to illustrate his ideas. He attempted to defend Jewish law and tradition against criticism by showing how they rest on internal reason rather than on external commands. Moreover, Philo viewed law and tradition not as an end but as a means to the ultimate goal of communion with God. Professor Sandmel analyzes the various components of Philo’s treatises and maintains that while Philo’s loyalty and assumptions are unquestionably Jewish, the way he thought was Greek.

The Church from the Gentiles in Palestine

Fr. Bellarmino Bagatti, O.F.M.

(Franciscan Printing Press, Jerusalem, 398 pp.) $9.00

This volume focuses on those Christians in Palestine “of gentile stock who lived according to the Pauline norms.” It is a complementary volume to Father Bagatti’s earlier work The Church of the Circumcision which treated the “history of Christians who had lived in Palestine according to the observance of the Mosaic law.”

Divided into an historical section which spans the period from the first to the eleventh centuries A.D. in the Holy Land, and into an archaeological section which treats in detail the material culture of those years, Bagatti’s publication ranks as the most important single work on the Christian presence in the Land of Israel. While there has been considerable debate and indeed confusion about his earlier book on the so-called “Judaeo-Christians,” there has been surprisingly little notice paid this significant work which attempts the only true synthesis of the literary evidence and the archaeological remains.

The subject has received recent attention in a most useful and important book by John Wilkinson, Jerusalem Pilgrims Before the Crusades (London, 1977), and in the several works of Asher Ovadiah on churches of the Holy Land. No doubt, much remains to be done on the subject, as indicated by recent discoveries of major importance in the Golan, Galilee and northern Negev. Bagatti’s principal argument suggesting a thriving Christian presence in the Land of Israel from pre-Constantinian times through the Crusades is incontestable. What remains to be discussed now is the origin of many of these Christian communities and the extent to which they interacted with Jews and pagans who also flourished for many of these centuries in cities and towns often contiguous with Christian centers. When historians of Christianity turn finally to the subject of the Palestinian Church, they will all be enriched by Bagatti’s erudition and pioneering work.

Harper’s Encyclopedia of Bible Life

Madeleine S. and J. Lane Miller

(Harper and Row, 1978) 400 pp. $15.95

“For many people, reading the Bible is like visiting a foreign country,” begins the newest edition of this ever popular Bible reference work. Providing clear answers to such questions as “How did the people of the Bible live?” and “What sort of work did they do?” is the secret of its 30 years in print.

The Encyclopedia is divided into three sections: the first discusses the compilation of the Bible itself, authorship, canonization and differences between the Hebrew and Christian Bibles. “How the People of the Bible Lived,” is the title of the second section, which provides background information about housing, food, clothing, medicine, jewelry, religious holidays, and birth, death, and marriage.

The third and most extensive portion of the work describes various occupations and professions of the ancient Near East: nomadism, settled farming, prophecy, the priestly life, sailing, music and much more.

The Encyclopedia is not flawless: The numerous photographs are of poor quality. Despite the update of information in this revised edition, some of the facts lag behind modern archaeological and historical scholarship. It blithely refers to King Solomon’s copper mines at Etzion Geber, although modern archaeologists agree Solomon never used them. It is written with a decidedly Christian slant. Even so, the Encyclopedia is full of interesting facts, figures, and bibliographic references.

Philo of Alexandria

Samuel Sandmel

(Oxford University Press, 1979) 104 pp. $12.95

In the early first century A.D. in Alexandria, as in the rest of the Greco-Roman world, Hellenism and Judaism had blended together; Philo Judaeus embodied this mixture.