Philo of Alexandria (ca. 20 BCE–50 CE) was the first person to write books explaining Judaism to a non-Jewish audience, the first to record a description of a pogrom, the first to try to reconcile Judaism with Greek thought, and the first to write about Judaism in the idiom of Western philosophy. He is also difficult to place in Jewish history: it is unclear whether he knew of the early rabbis or they of him; later Jewish thought paid no attention to him until around the 16th century; and his allegorical readings of the Bible differ greatly from the approaches favored by rabbinic Judaism. In fact, his work was largely preserved because of ancient Christian authors.
In this discussion with J.J. Kimche, Maren Niehoff explains Philo’s life and work and argues that he is much closer to the Jewish mainstream than generally assumed, noting that he wrote extensively about Jewish law and that his biblical commentaries—which pose textual difficulties, acknowledge multiple opinions, and engage in argument—have much in common with their rabbinic counterparts.
Read more on Podcast of Jewish Ideas: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/27-philo-of-alexandria-dr-maren-niehoff/id1676948818?i=1000651403796