Portrayals of the Wise and Virtuous

In the collection of conference papers presented below, I have received a copy of the this contribution, directly related to the study of Philo: Ellen Birnbaum, Portrayals of the Wise and Virtuous in Alexandrian Jewish Works: Jews' Perceptions of Themselves and Others (pp. 125-160). E. Birnbaum here sets out to try to understand how Alexandrian Jews perceived themselves and others, by focusing on the literary evidence available in the Letter of Aristeas, the Wisdom of Salomon, and the works of Philo. These sources, she states, portray in very different ways how wise and good people may overlap with Jews and non-Jews. Her particular concern, furthermore, is to determine who the wise and good people are, both among Jews and non-Jews.
Her conclusion (p. 159) is that even though the three sources here studied vary somewhat in their positions on interacting with non-Jews, they share a general agreement about the differences between Jews and non- Jews. Viewed from the perspective of their most open stance, Aristeas and Philo both acknowledge that non-Jews can recognize God and can display an admirable degree of wisdom and virtue. From another perspective, however, both authors share with the author of the Wisdom of Salomon the notion that only the Jews believe in and worship the one true God. In addition, Jews’ obedience to God’s laws sets them apart even more from non-Jews. .. The one constant theme running through all these works is a commitment to the one true God and to his Laws. For the authors of these works, it is this commitment that renders Jews wiser and more virtuous than non-Jews.

This is only a brief glimpse of what is to be found in this interesting article, a glimpse meant to inspire readers of this blog to go on, and read the whole article for themselves. Tolle lege!