Philosophical cosmology and religious polemic: The “worship of creation” in the writings of Philo of Alexandria and the Wisdom of Solomon

This article treats Hellenistic Jewish literature that ridicules the alleged worship of the elements, the heavens, the heavenly bodies, or other “parts” of the cosmos, especially as developed in the writings of Philo of Alexandria and Ps-Solomon. It is argued that such claims constitute a distinctiv...

Full description

Saved in:  
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Wasserman, Emma 1975- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Check availability: HBZ Gateway
Journals Online & Print:
Drawer...
Fernleihe:Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste
Published: Sage 2021
In: Journal for the study of the pseudepigrapha
Year: 2021, Volume: 31, Issue: 1, Pages: 6-28
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Creation / Veneration / kosmos / Early Judaism / Philo, Alexandrinus 25 BC-40 / Bible. Wisdom 13 / Philo of Byblos 54-140
B Image veneration
IxTheo Classification:BH Judaism
HB Old Testament
Further subjects:B Wisdom of Solomon
B Philo of Alexandria
B Philo of Byblos
B Aristobulus
B Romans 1
B philosophical cosmology
B Idolatry
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Description
Summary:This article treats Hellenistic Jewish literature that ridicules the alleged worship of the elements, the heavens, the heavenly bodies, or other “parts” of the cosmos, especially as developed in the writings of Philo of Alexandria and Ps-Solomon. It is argued that such claims constitute a distinctive sub-type of religious polemic that draws on and adapts from Platonic and Stoic traditions of cosmology. Such polemics are most clearly developed in Philo’s treatises and in chapter 13 of the Wisdom of Solomon, but they also appear in more abbreviated form in the fragments of Philo of Byblos and Aristobulus. I suggest that these traditions of invective may bear on the interpretation of Rom 1:19–23, but only in an indirect way.
ISSN:1745-5286
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal for the study of the pseudepigrapha
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1177/09518207211041308