Philo of Alexandria: The Founder of Religious Philosophy

Philo is the founder of religious philosophy in the realm of the Abrahamic religions and, according to Henry Corbin, a prophetic philosophy that has a deep connection with angelism. He played a significant role in the formation of Christian philosophy and, consequently, Islamic and Jewish philosophy. Philo’s simultaneous interest in Greek culture and philosophy, on the one hand, and his fascination with the Hebrew tradition, on the other, led him to seek to reconcile the two; without sacrificing one for the benefit of the other. All of Philo’s efforts can be evaluated on this basis. The combination of reason and revelation, in other words, religious philosophy, created problems that had no precedent. According to the author, Philo seeks to answer such problems with a focus on Logos. In this book, considering all three attributes for the Logos, namely, the ontological or metaphysical dignity, the epistemic dignity, and the functional or value dignity, all of Philo’s ideas and thoughts are systematically addressed.