Recommended Reading List I

Some readers would perhaps expect that I would recommend reading the texts of Philo first of all; but no. I don't think that is a smart procedure. The danger is inherent that the reader will soon get lost in the many arguments, digressions and expositions of Philo, and get too frustrated. There are many trees in the wood of Philo. One need a map.

I would like to suggest it is better to first read some introductory material to Philo, and then turn to the texts, and then turn to some further introductory matters. Then one could proceed by studying some selected topics. I will return to these issues in later postings, and suggest where to start, and how to read through the works of Philo.

But first now some introductory reading. I might recommend that one should start with some rather brief introductions to Philo. Here is two informative articles, written by one of the Philo experts of our time:David T. Runia, 'How to read Philo,' Idem, Exegesis and Philosophy: Studies on Philo of Alexandria (Variorum, Aldershot, 1990), pp. 185-198.

David T. Runia, "Philo, Alexandrian and Jew," Idem, Exegesis and Philosophy: Studies on Philo of Alexandria (Variorum, Aldershot, 1990), pp. 1-18.
Then the reader should proceed with the most recent introduction to Philo, and work his/her way through these pages. It is a small, but very informative introduction:
Kenneth Schenck, A Brief Guide to Philo Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2005, pp. xi + 172, Paperback.
This is an informative and practical introduction; I presume the reader will be tempted more than once to turn directly to the works of Philo, but be patient. Don't do it. There is more to come. Perhaps one might want, for the time being, to skip chapter 6 as this deals with the individuals writings of Philo. Hence it might be smart to save this section to when actual reading the works of Philo.I have a review of this work here: Review of Biblical Literature 07/2005
Then I strongly recommend reading one more introduction before turning to the texts of Philo (remember; patience is a virtue..)
Samuel Sandmel, Philo of Alexandria; An Introduction (Oxford; Oxford University Press, 1979) This is a very good introduction too, written by a Jewish scholar. It is somewhat larger than the former by Schenck, and will lead the reader to the point of being further initiated into the world of Philo. How to proceed will be the topic of my next posting on "Recommended Readings."