Episode 2: “Philo of Alexandria", Part 1, in "Mystical Theology", with Dr. Christopher Veniamin

Mystical Theology: Introducing the Theology and Spiritual Life of the Orthodox Church

Series: Mystical Theology
Unit 1: Introduction
Episode 2: Philo of Alexandria, Part 1
Introducing the theology and spiritual life of the Orthodox Church, with particular reference to the Holy Bible and the witness of the Church Fathers, past and present.
This Episode, "Philo of Alexandria, Part 1", consists of a presentation of Philo, an Alexandrian rabbi of the first century, who was a near contemporary of Christ, and sought to introduce the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, to his pagan intellectual contemporaries.
In this episode, Dr. Christopher Veniamin presents the following aspects of Philo’s contribution in particular: his apophatic (mystical theology), his created–uncreated distinction, the distinction Philo makes between the divine nature and the powers of God, and also the distinctiveness of his Logos theology.
It is hoped that these presentations will help the enquirer discern the interwoven character of theology and the Christian living, and to identify the ascetic and pastoral significance of the Orthodox ethos.
Q&As related to Episode 2 available in The Professor’s Blog.
Recommended background reading: Christopher Veniamin, ed., Saint Gregory Palamas: The Homilies (Dalton PA: 2022).
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: I wish to express my indebtedness to the spoken and written traditions of Sts Silouan and Sophrony the Athonites, Fr. Zacharias Zacharou, Fr. Kyrill Akon, Fr. Raphael Noica, Fr. Symeon Brüschweiler; Fr. John Romanides, Fr. Pavlos Englezakis, Fr. Georges Florovsky, Prof. Constantine Scouteris, Prof. George Mantzarides, Prof. John Fountoulis, Fr. Andrew Louth, and particularly to Mtp Kallistos Ware and Prof. Panayiotes Chrestou: certain sentences and phrases utilized in these presentations are taken directly from my notes of some of their lectures. My presentations have been enriched by all of the above sources, owing to the adoption of certain structures, lists, schemata, and the paraphrasing of themes taken from them. Responsibility for the content of my presentations is of course mine alone. ©Christopher Veniamin 2023

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1. Philo of Alexandria's Theology and Influence (00:00:00)

2. Philo's Logos Theology and Divine Powers (00:25:51)

3. The Logos and the Two Powers (00:36:49)