Jewish Women Philosophers of First-Century Alexandria

The first-century ascetic Jewish philosophers known as the 'Therapeutae', described in Philo's treatise De Vita Contemplativa, have often been considered in comparison with early Christians, the Essenes, and the Dead Sea Scrolls. This study, which includes a new translation of De Vita Contemplativa, focuses particularly on issues of historical method, rhetoric, women, and gender, and comes to new conclusions about the nature of the group and itsrelationship with the allegorical school of exegesis in Alexandria. Joan E. Taylor argues that the group represents the tip of an iceberg in terms of ascetic practices and allegorical exegesis, and that the women described point to the presence of other Jewish women philosophers in Alexandria in the first century CE.Members of the group were 'extreme allegorizers' in following a distinctive calendar, not maintaining usual Jewish praxis, and concentrating their focus on attaining a trance-like state in which a vision of God's light was experienced. Their special 'feast' was configured in terms of service at a Temple, in which both men and women were priestly attendants of God.

This is a vigorous presentation of fresh and challenging interpretations of the Therapeutae...written with verve, clarity and...touches of humor. [it is]...a sharply delineated and innovative understanding of Contemplativa and the community it describes., In this book Taylor, well-known for her fine studies Christians and the Holy Places and The Immerser: John the Baptist within Second Temple Judaism presents a thorough analysis of Philo's De Vita Comtemplativa with special attention for what he says about the Therapeutrides, the female members of the Jewish monastic group...The book is fluently written and I recommend it wholeheartedly to all classicists who have an interest in things Jewish., This book is very well researched and original. The author brings a wealth of archaelogical, Hellenistic, Jewish, Palestinian and Christian sources to bear on Philo's treatise On the Contemplative Life...The lasting value of this book is twofold. It explores the status and activities of the Therapeutrides in more detail that earlier scholarship, thus reconstructing an important aspect of first-century Judaism. It also raises intriguing questions regarding the spreading of this phenomenon...Beyond these issues related to women, the book is important because it reads one text of Philo against the grain and attempts to reconstruct a type of Judaism that differed in some significant respects from his own. This contributes to our understanding of the diversity of Alexandrian Judaism., The present book is a superb study of the Therapeutae...In general, the book is both well structured and very well written. It is filled with interest and is highly recommended, especially for the second part., Drawing on a splendid range of international scholarship, the author examines one text that witnesses to a small group...All in all, this outstanding book exemplifies how women may be made visible by a scrupulously careful scholar, employing the additional lens of gender by which to discern their reality.

Joan E. Taylor is Honorary Research Fellow in the Department of History at University College London and Honorary Fellow in the Department of Religious Studies and Philosophy at Waikato University, Hamilton, New Zealand