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. ... '., . ". Most scholars assume that Philo has a positive 'view of the female members of .'. the community at Lake· Mareotis which he describes in,hisDe Vita Con.templativa.This article questions this, from the perspective of Philo's attitude to "pretty slave boys' used for sexual purposes, to whom he ascribes the "female disease'. Philo was forced to accomodate the Therapeutrides even '. though he did not approve of their presence in the community as such. He des-

_ . .' cribes them as I mostly aged virgins' because his view of l'VVClLKCC; {as opposed to }rcxpOipot}, does not permit him to ascribe, positive values to them .. '

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. : .Inhis p~'Vita Contempla tiva , Philo of Alexandria describes in glowing terms the'life of an ancient Jewish community at Lake Mareotis near Alexandria

. . ... . .

.. ,,(see Heinemann 1934; Kraemer 1989; JZichardson 1993; Taylor & Davies

'1998).1' In this description, two particularly interesting issues of gender arid

. . . ~.

sexuality elnerge: Philo's extreme reaction to, the sexual use of slave boys by

" .theguests ... at' ancient .symposia, and' his-apparently positive description of the

. . ..

w<?mell at Lake Mareotis, Both issues are connected, most obviouslyperhaps

'by" the .'. enigmatic -'female disease' ~ -w hich . 1; hil 0 ascribes. to" the ", p retry '.' slave

' .. ·boys' (Corztempl§O)}" Theconcept of the 'femaledisease' attributedtothese , '. ',boY$,:is based on thePhiJonic association 'of .diseaseand 'being femal,e'~{QG

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1 An earlier version of this article originally formed part of (1 aper presel1t~g at the

, 1997, Annual, ,Meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature"' San '.' Francisco, USA,

November 21-25). In'-this tegard, the financial' support of the 'University of the North ' ... ' ..•. ' as 'well as the Centre for Science: Development of the' Human Sciences Research Coun-

cil (pretoria, South Africa) is gratefully acknowledged. I would like to thank the participants at the second session of the Philo of Alexandria Group at the SBL meeting . . for their cons~ructive criticisln, in particular the respondent Prof David !vI Hay, and ,- ,my cq-presenters in that session. I am also indebtedtoP rof J on~than'A Draper, 1v1r . ····MichaeILamben, Prof Dorothy Sly, and Dr Nicholas H Taylor fot their"valuable

. comnlents on drafts of this article. '

2 References to Philonic works follow the system described in the Studia Philonica Annual 8 (1996),222-228.

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192 PHILO AND THE THERAPEUTRlDES

4.15, Leg 2.97, Praem 159), which is related to the denigration of the passions, which are, in turn, quintessentially female (Szesnat 1998a). The use of these .. slave boys for sexual purposes is seen as changing their souls arid ... (at least

. potentially) their bodies into female form (cf Abr. 136), which (for-Philo, not his Greek or Roman contemporaries}' is regarded as extremely degrading to these boys. Philo's violent opposition to any same-sex sexual intercourse between males (cf Spec 3.38), based on a rigid conception of gender stereotypes, the transgression of which is ·regarded with extreme hostility (cf Szesnat 1998a, 1998b chap 4), even leads him to some uncharacteristically careless and misleading references to Plato and Xenophon (Contempl 57 -63). In this regard, Philo appears at the extreme end of the Graeco-Roman valorisation of the 'rnale', the denigration of the 'female' J and the increasing rejection of erotic same-gender relations,· not only for women (cf Hallett

.: 1989, Brooten 1996, Szesnat [1999],_ but also for men (cf Richlin 1993; Wil-

liams 1995).

If Philo was able to use a phrase like 'female disease' to describe the sexual use of slave boys, what does this say about women? It is from this angle that I want to approach the question of the presence of women in the comrnunity at Lake Mareotis for, as I said, these issues are related. The interpretation of Philo's attitude to male same-sex intercourse which I summarised above, focussing on Philo's fear of gender transgression (cf Brooten 1985) tal-

lies with Sly's study of Philo's perception of women. Sly argues that Philo's . . ····key concept in· respect- of women is 'control): 'real' women {contemporaries

·..0£ Philo, thatis) present no danger to men as long as theyare in their 'proper ....... place' in the hierarchy god man~ woman child (cf Sly 1991, 1994). I

... .. would argue that even his positive allegorical interpretation of female Biblical . . . _figures in- the Pentateuch (Sly 1990:91-178), which' occurs throughout his ':work, is forced upon him by the text. Philo's allegorical use of the notion of

. . ,'virginity' in this regard is an attempt to deal with the positive presence of .. female figures in the septuagintal text. In such allegorical interpretation, . Philo focuses on the 'purity' of virginity (though not in a ritual sense), and on the 'undefiled' status of virgins (in contrast to women), so much so that virgins are no longer female but virtually male (Baer 1970:45-64; Sly

.1990: 131-178; Aspegren 1990:79-98). .. . . ..

. . .. For Philo, ·7rap()ivoL and l'UVCXLKe~ belong to two different classes of

.... , beings. In Philo's view, the virgin is transformed into a woman through the

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. (1988); Foucault·, (1986); Richlin (1992, 1993); Williams (1995); Brooten (1996); Tayior

{1997).

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NEOTESTMffiNTICA 32(1) 1998

193

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sexual intercourse that the man has with her {QE 2.3, Somn 2.185).4 When, in the context of allegorical interpretation, Philo contrasts God's 'conversing' . (OJl<AS~V) exclusively with virginal souls with human reality, he says matter-of-factly: 'it is the opposite with us. For the union of human beings .... turns virgins into women' (Cher 50).5 As Sly points out, Philo does not encourage contemporary women to imitate the positive Biblical matriarchs he describes unlike the patriarchs, whose example men are encouraged to follow (cf Mas 1.158; QG 4.138; see Sly 1990:74).6 As Heinemann has already pointed out in his seminal study, originally published in the 1930's (1962:232):

.....

Die Ausnahme der Sara, die "das \Veibliche im Stich lief und ins Mannergemach iiberging" (De ebr. 60), gilt nur fur das Reich der Allegorie: in Wa..~rheit sind Mannweiber/ Philon ebenso unsympathisch wie weibische Manner (De sacr.. Ab,

10.0); und man so11 Waisentochter erziehen, "wie es sich fur Madchen geh6rt" (SpL. II 125) .

In my view, Philo cannot encourage permanent virginity for women (or men, for that matter) since that would contradict one's duty to procreate (cf Belkin 1940;219-20; Heinemann 1962:267-268; Baer 1970:94-95), which is one of Philo's basic principles for legitimate sexual intercourse (Gaca 1996).8

If this is so, how do the Therapeutrides fit into this picture? How is it possible .that they are, at least on the face of it, accorded very positive values in De Vita Contemplatiuai Baer already noted the tension between the posi. tive role ascribed to the 'I'herapeutrides and Philo's disregard for all things female (1970:75), although, as Sly -observes, Baer does not explain the

~ t: .

4 There may be a remnant of this in contemporary, Western-influenced cultures,

where the onset of 'womanhood" is-associated with the first sexual intercourse a 'girl' has with a 'man': sex with a male 'makes' a female a woman.

5 In this article Philonic texts and translations have been taken from the Loeb Classi-

,

cal Library edition. However, especially with regard to matters sexual, I have fre-

quently amended that translation.

6 A participant in the second session of the Philo of Alexandria Group at the 1997

Annual Meeting of the Society for Biblical Literature, pointed out that Philo does not usually encourage women to do anything. While it ~s true that men, and not :varnen, are Philo ) s implied audience, it is also true that ~h~o comments on appropriate and inappropriate behaviour of women. Although this 15 not the .s~e as an exho:ratlon explicitly adressed to women, it can be understood as an indirect exhortation to women via their husbands and fathers. Nevertheless, I agree that one ought not to read

. too much into this argumentum e silentio.

7 I ignore here the rather negative connotations of the German word .N!ar:r:w~ib.

8 More precisely, for Philo it is procreation rather than pleasure that legitirnises sexual intercourse within wedlock. Caca's second principle is 'sexual apostacy"; I have argued that Philo has a rather more general notion in mind, namely obedience to the Torah (Szesnat 1998a:88-89) .

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NEOTEST AMENTICA 32(1) 1998

195

194

PHILO AND THE THERAPEUTRlDES

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rationale behind this tension (Sly 1990:57). The text of Contempl generally'1:~g~;t6~:.~~ ~~~lW~~.:~ :;l~~~{"': Finally, women appear again in the hymns sung at the feast, at first

assumes men as its subject; Philo says that he is compelled to speak of the';::::'~~?M ~~~}j.:.;: .. '. indirectly: 'all (males) and all (females)' (7raVTc<; TC Kat 7r&ao:~) chant refrains

virtues shown by men (liVOpOL; 1);9 it is men who leave their property to thei~::·,?t~itA?· ~{~,:', (80). Later, women and men form two choirs (83) who sing until sun:ise:

falnilies when they take up the' contemplative life' (13), who leave 'theirn:;{fj,;+,~ i~:;;~.»separately at first, they .latcr join to form a single choir, imitating the choir at

brothers, their children, their wives, their parents' behind (18) no n1enti()ri·/:<,~~f:;··~fJ:~~:~?>~ .. the Red Sea (85) led by Moses and Miriam (87)) creating harmonious concord)

is made of women leaving their families. The members of the community at,·,·~::\.~:f;t; :~1~;?':~'~ true music (88).

Lake Mareotis read not only I-Ioly Scriptures (28) but also 'writings of men ofF;;::~~;:~ ~;.<. . There seems to be considerable scholarly consensus (with notable excep-

old (o-v"(yaJ1JlaTCL 7rClAaLWV CxlIDpwv) , the founders of their way of thinking' >f~'(jj~~1 tions) that Philo had a positive view of the Therapeutrides' p,?ilosophical

(29). The senior member (7rpca{Jurcxroc;) who addresses them seems to be' a';':.>:r·( capabilities.I? For instance, Harrison has recently interpreted the presence ?f

man (31).. and so is their 'president' (7rPOCOPOc;; 79-80) which is underlined' .~~'."::~~~ . the Therapcutrides in the context of her claim that 'the place of gender In

by the walled separation of women and men in common meetings on sab-"<;:);ii \<Philo's anthropology is far less monolithic) than Sly (1990) or Aspegren

baths, which 'allows women to hear' J the implication being that the speaker>:r:~±~~, (1990) suggest. According to Harrison, Philo's use of the Platonic image of

is a man standing in the men's section. Finally, while Philo refers to the cOln-.·';~';~{~{-r~?,t spiritual childbirth implies (and Contempt 68, cited above) seems to be related

rnunity members as 'people (cxvOPW7rO,) of good birth and high character and:.·:'~,"{~l~; to this) that Philo

trained practice in philosophy' (69), it must be recognised that he generally "::':':~~:f'~~~~ envisages the spiritually mature man as having feIn~in~ cha~a:teristics along with

does not include women when' he refers to CtvOPW7rO, (cf Sly 1990:59-70)),,'~:~<~'j~, masculine ones; that is, men are called to become vlrgll1S, be impregnated by the

which suggests that, yet again, Philo would have had men in mind here. . ",',::?:t~~~ , divine, and bear spiritual children. Philo also recognizes that some tuomen, such as

Nevertheless, Philo notes the presence of women in the community at ":~:,~,'!~', '.',;. those belonging to the ascetical Therapeutae, can exercise these positive [eminine capa~

Lake Marcotis. Although, significantly, women do not appear in the first, . ··:.~)Hi, .r.y;-.":~_' t1~}.·; . cities, but his main focus is on men (Harrison 1995:520-521; emphasis n1il1c).11

general section on people who live the conten1plative life (1-21), Philo specif- Kraemer) although 3.rguing largely the opposite of Harrison, suggests that

icallymentions them as part of the group at Lake lvIarcotis (22-90). Their ···:~:'Fit;~/i~--'-"-0~»'-"·-·.-=-[-:C~··~- Philo 'accepted and approved of [the old virgins'] life' in the cO,mm.uni~y

first mention is occasioned by Philo's description of 'the common sanctuary"::::<'}'~~j~S} (1989:356).12 Similarly, while emphasising the aspect of male domination In

(TO KOL.:~Bv (JCjlVClOl') in which the group meets on the Sabbath (32). One part . "'>~~~~', ~,_ ~."< Contcmpl in her first book, Philo'5 Per:eption. of Won,len (~990), Sl~ ncverthc-

regularly make part of the audience with the same ardour and the same sense ... ,'ti:'~1~~~/;~g.~~·;,· . intends. to portray the Therapeutrides in a positive fashion. Sly notes that In

of their calling'. A wall separates the men and women, allowing the won1en;~::;;f1~~.111~.~.,>.:. the first-century J ewish community" ~f Alexandria, as depicted by Philo,

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The feast is shared by women also, most of them aged virgins (<JUJI€UTLWJlTCa Of K~~ ,),vvaLKcC;, WV iTA€LorQ:t 'Y7]PD::UXI. 7rapOivoL), who have kept their chastity (a'YV€Loc) not under compulsion, like some of the Greek priestesses, but of their own free will in their ardent yearning for wisdom, Eager to have her [wisdom] for their life

. mate, they have spurned the pleasures of the body and desire no mortal offspring but those immortal children which only the soul that is dear to God canbrine to the birth unaided, because the Father has sown Ln. her spiritual rays enabling her to behold the verities of wisdom.

10 That is, their capabilities in Philo's ·view. \Vhat the Therapcutridcs' standing in

their community was is not il1Y concern here (but see Kraemer .1989). _

11 See also her earlier articl~ on Philo (1994). This is l1?t the p!ac; to ques~lon" Harrison's argulnent as' such, which she develops on the ~asls of Philo s allegorical inter-

pretation. My point is 0at if one approa~hes the question of t~e presence o~ women at Lake Mareotis from a dilfcrent angle, a different set of conclusions suggests ltse~f.

12 Although I largely agree wit~ ~raen:er's arg11I~entJ I d~ nO,t share he~ VIew tl.lat the Therapcutrides embody the vlrgmal fIgures, of Ius allegorical interpretations, wl:1ch make them no longer female, and for which reason Kraeme~ argues. tha.t, ~hc Therapeutrides were no longer women and thercfo~c ?,o.longer sU~Ject to hIS crl.tlc~sm of women' (1989:356). As indicated, I regard Philo s ll1t~rpretatlon. of the BIbh,cal matriarchs which turn into virgins as a matter which remains pur~ly ill the allegoncal realm; that is) Philo does not apply this to the conte~porary, social realm. Ho\vcver, this is a separate issue which needs further elaboration elsewhere (see also Szcsnat

1998b chap, 4) .

9 In th~ following, references to De Vita Contcmplativa are usually placed in simple

brackets ill the text. . . '.

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196 PHILO AND THE THERAPEUTRIDES--:-:,:~c:~',~:if~~~:~"·-: , ,;:f*W~~:~:~'--. NEOTESTAMENTICA 32(1) 1998 - - 197

- 1 "II'~ • , "' __ "11" , WI' , ... --, •• l:ls ,,:Is 11:11i_ .. - :1st - 1 .... d __ • __ ,,_ EQ ' .... -.-:~~.~~~-:':"¢0~~ y. • • • .' :.,::;.;.<:::::::_.':~...,~~.,<: .~~._ - _ _ .. *1_ ... _." __ "II' _,,... 1 "'F I5f __ .... _, ... _ z:zI: _ z:zI:... ....._ :Is

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She suggests, therefore, that Philo might have in mind women who are n~~~_?:l~i"~,~~-> ·~!titf.T_~---:'been virgins after all. Viewed in this .light, then, the reference to the age of

longer sexually active, and refers to Spec 1.129 in that regard. In that passageJ':(;~~:JE~~-i.- ~';~~N::_: these women is a matter of the politics of reputation. Philo could hardly,

Philo s?caks of the virgin-like state of a childless widow who is the daught~~~,>.~~~1~~I;;~ Z:~~~;I~_~::_write that the Therapeutae lived together with a number of young virgins; of a prIest: she ought to return to her Ltthcr to enjoy her share of the first .. _:<{~~,:j1;i~;i~tf~~{~~;>\--·· this would have invited the kind of 'knowing laughter' which accompanied fruits that are given to her father, just as she did when she was a virgin (ie~,'";.~-~~~,tI~I.iil~X.{--' the frequent re-telling of the story of Socrates spending a night alone with the before her marriage): 'For in a way, she is still a virgin in capacity" (Tp67rov-:,\':-;j1%~i@_~1}~::(:- ',' beautiful (and willing) Alkibiades without having sexual intercourse with

'Yap TLVO: KCXt vuv cct: DVVC¥j-LCL 7rcxpeivoc;), without husband and children, '~-~m!~l}Y[if;I~~;:-:--'--- him (Plato, Symp 216c-21ge; cf Boswell 1980:47).

l:aving n~body else f~r refuge but ~cr lather.' The point of comparison he~e ·-:-~~:_\~~,!~I.iI~:::F;---· Philo's use of the virgin m?tif for ~hc women at Lake Marcotis would

lies only ~n her vul~crable ec~non:lc and legal status (cf Spec 2.125, 4.178; Vlrt--.-:;:f,~l~l.~f:-}?-:- then be a very.rcluct~nt on.e. :t IS ~o. accident that there arc no .. contemporary

114): she 1S not DVV(Xp.,CL 7rCXpO[;VOC; in any other sense. .<--'~Z~::£(~~ii'~~~1:;":--- older female figures In Philo s wrItings who arc called 7rapOcvoL. I-Ie has to

. . .. , J?,. -:,_-::J:t ~".'"'i' . .-.=.:---"'::' _.7- - ..... ". .

However, developing a point she made on Brooten's observations (1982) . :-,~-:Sf~t~l.i{H::,-- make usc of this motif because for him, these 'VOlTICn cannot possibly be

on the leadership positions of contemporary women in nearby Leontopolis)_-;,:{~:tfl~'~~"i"'_-' ,..tVVO:~KCC; and be positively valued; hence they have to be 7ra.pOipo~. As a Sly (1990:211 n 44) later argues that in Contempl, P hila writes an account of.,-,{.·!{t-t~11~·if:·~;-'-- result, he stresses the notion of spiritual childbirth, and wisdom as life-mate

t!1e cOlnm~nity at Lake Mare.otis which allows f?~ certain women to live the --::'::}~'1i~~\1~?-:' (63): this is explic~tl?' for th~se women only, not for the men, as ~r~em~r life of meditative contemplation and study (tradItIonally the reserve of men) :--;<~:~1:~?§iq~ji;:>-- . pOlnts out (1989:3)5; cf Matula 1996:126 n 26). For these women, this motif

,:hile remaining in non-thrcaten'i~g posit.ions vis:a-vi~ men's l.eadersh~p func .. · .·.::-;:'<~~1{lllIlif(-: ful~ills the ~uty of ?focreation at least in name, an~ that is the rea~~n W~1Y

tions (199~: 146). Indeed, she says: Sometimes Philo gives the ImpreSSIon that ;-_'~:'~~~~~~J~~~W> Philo uses It only In respect of women: the men In the community have

he would like to wish them away' (1995: 145).lJ In this regard, I am in agree- -.'t0rltt~;}r: already fulfilled their procrcational duty by fathering children (they leave

rnent with Sly's work. From the perspective of Philo's problematisation of,:-?::::ti~t'i!~:;:' children behind; 13, 18). Nevertheless, Philo docs not exploit this image as

contemporary women, boys) sex, and desire, presupposing that Philo's view::--:~ti~f&_1~;~;::" much as he could have: the obvious link with the allegorical biblical virgins

of what 'the female' constitutes is as negative as Iny previous comments sug- -.;"}~J<~kl.j}s~-- or with the creation story is entirely missing. There is not even a fleeting'

gest, Philo would not be welcoming the presence of women at Lake Mareotis, . -'---.:'~-~::;?~~~tlil~t,:~~--- reference to Sarah) although for 'aged virgins', this would be the perfect

and would not be (indirectly) supporting permanent virginity for contempo---:::_,'i:~i~~t.~~,:--· place: for the allegorical Sarah 'turned into a ~irgin) again (Cber 50). As in the'

rary womeninhis description of the Therapeutrides. In my view, Philo men- ·:.:;~~l~1}-::-~: rest of his work,' Philo leaves this in1age:'oI Sarah, the post-luenopausal.

tions ')'uvaZKc<; (and not, at first, 7ro:pOcpod) as part of the community simply ."~:~~~)J;;~.;;~~:,:. woman, the 'passions now calmed in her' (Spec 2.54), entirely to the realm of

because they were in fact part of it. Philo apparently had no influence over _'-:::>~~\~!f~~1::-:-- allegory (pace Kraemer 1989:353-354).14 Even within Contempt, a writing

the practices of the Therapcutae/Therapcutridcs. I-Ie does not claim to have-/~~r~!&~~~ff;_-:-: which uses little explicit allegorical interpretation, such an omission is sur-

been part of their community, Yet he could not deny the women's presence):~':J'~iBt~~li~I:' prising, considering Philo's perception of women. .

for their location was too close to Alexandria. To explain their presence, he ::'~-,~f:~t~ll~f\-: . Philo, then, does not encourage the kind of. arrangement which allows t~c

is. forced to invoke the image of the virgin, contradicting his own use of 'YUJ'7]--':~,ff~1~~f~1~-~::~_ Therapeutrides to exist) apparently side by SIde, almost on an equal baSIS)

in other parts of' Contempl (remembering that for Philo, 7ro:pOClJO, and-:F~~~~;~s:~':- with the (male) Therapeutae. In a recent essay, Hay noted several 'value COil-

'YVVUZKCr.; belong to different orders of beings). The 'undefiled') 'pure' status . .:-~:}}'t:fF;'6~~;~· fliers' between the views - of P hila and the 1"1herapeutac/Thcrapeutridcs,

• • "- .: ..... ':-"-: :-_.--.;:,:-:. ~'.: .. ~":::' .» : ~ .. ' .:

of virgins is the only way in which he can in1agine female figures positively. --:<~;~~'~-~t~'.E~:--

Yet the real presence of women _at Lake Mareotis SCClllS to have forced Philo . -'-'))?~~~~f:-

to admit that not even all of these women are in fact 'aged virgins': they are -~:_;~:,"rft:~liiy:- . mostly aged virgins (?fAcio-rex£' 1'YJpaLal 7fo:p8CPOL; 68). Philo's use of 7rAs7(JTat)-'.:/!;~i{r:_;-·:· I would suggest; is not accidental: the 'real' Thcrapeutrides may not have-::-:;-:~;-;i~lJ~~t·

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14 Perhaps this is one o( the reasons why Philo, in Cher 43, using the language of mystery cults, calls for restraint in imparting 'these things' to the uninitiated. Sly. cites an apt comment of N.il~iprowctzky: 'wh.crl. Philo is going to present an ar~n1cnt ~h~t SOIl1.C people would ridicule, he hedges It 111 mystery language, and explains that It. is intended only for the U initiates") (Sly 1990: 134). In the context of Cber 48, Philo would have been worried about the possible misunderstanding of.his image of divine intercourse with a human female (t€PO~ ')'cXf!OC;!), but also, I would suggest. the possibility that, if taken literally, post-menopausal women would 'turn into virgins' and become potentially powerful figures, usurping the role of men.

..

13 I am most grateful to Prof Sly for correcting me on my earlier position which I based on her first book. I am all the more satisfied that my suggestions are in agreement with her argument in her latest work.

...... " ,,- .

198 PHILO AND THE THERAPEUTRlDES

including the status of women; my views tend to corroborate his argument (Hay 1992:674-675). It is important to stress that Philo never advocates virginity for 'real' women, even if they are exceptional: the Therapeutrides are .. forced on him like the biblical figures, which the pentateuchal text presents; and like the grammatical gender of certain key terms in Philo's writings (e g

~ 4>v(JtC; or ~ ao¢ia).-15 The same applies to Julia Augusta (i e Livia), the only . contemporary woman to whom Philo ascribes a fully positive value.l'' She is ..... praised for 'excelling her sex' as her training gave manliness to her reasoning power (apPcPw()sLa(X TOP Aoytaf10v; Legat 320): Philo virtually turns her into a man. But, not surprisingly in the context of Legal, Philo did this for rhetori-

cal and political purposes.l/ J ulia Augusta is not a model but a grudgingly granted exception.

Perhaps, then, in this instance the male, celibate Essenes are far more of an ideal community for Philo than the community at Lake Mareotis. Regardless of Philo's distinction between the 'active' and the 'contemplative' life, P hila would prefer the Essenes to the Therapeutae/Therapeutrides in respect of their exclusively male community status (Hypoth 11.14). Like Josephus, he must have heard that the Essenes were a celibate, male community (whether true or not, and for what reasons, is another matter), and he exploits this fully in Prob and Hypotb. the Essenes fit into his attitude to women, the Therapeutrides do not.

In this article, I have posed the question whether the Therapeutrides are positively valued by Philo. Contrary to what is usually assumed, I suggest that the reality-of the presence of women at the Mareotic Lake forced Philo to find a positive role for them in the form of ascribing the status of permanent virgins to" them: they are a concession, not the ideal. As a result, pern1anent female virginity is not actually an option which Philo would advocate for contemporary women: marriage is the ethically acceptable and, I would suggest, implicitly preferable norm for Philo. This is in spite of the fact

-

, ,

15 On the gender aspects of Philo's concepts of (JO<pLO'.. and ¢vaL~, see Mattila (1996).

16 Perhaps I also ought to mention the case of the 'Dardanian women taken prisoners by the Macedonians' (Prob 115) who were so 'manly' that they preferred killing their

. children rather than letting them grow up in slavery, in spite of the 'fact' that women,

in Philo's view, are 'endowed by nature with little sense' (rit ¢VU€L OAL')'o¢pova; Prob 117). One should note that citing certain historical cases of exemplary and necessarily unusual behaviour is not uncommon in - classical literature (e g Thucydides on Korkyrian wives helping their husbands' class-struggle by throwing tiles from the rooftops onto the heads of the oligarchs: 'their endurance of the din of battle is "unnatural", para pbusin'; \Vinkler 1990:20).

17 Placed on the writing tablet of Agrippa (Legat 276-329), the purpose of this section is to placate Caligula for contradicting his ancestors' attitude to the Jewish people. On Legat, see Smallwood (1970).

,

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NEOTESTAMENTICA 32(1) 1998

199

that his apparently positive description of the .. virginal Therapeutrides, and .... his allegorical interpretation in particular, opens this possibility for theearly church, in parts of which female virginity could later b~ regarded as- pre- . ferable to the control of desire in marriage. Of course, Philo'"\Vasnot- the only·

source for such notions in the early church: Paul. could be read in this way,: and so could some 'pagan' philosophers. But that is anotherissue.1B,--:'.:.-: .

-

. . .'

. .

. . .

WORKS CONSULTED

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Castelli, E A 1991. 'I will make Mary male': Pieties of the body and gender transforluation of Christian women in late antiquity, in Epstein, J& Straub, K (eds}, . Bodyguards: The cultural politics 0/ gender ambiguity, 29-49, New York: Routledge. .

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w .._.. .... -.. ..... __. ~ ....................

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chap 5); Vagt (1993). .. ... . .

- '

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200

PHILO AND THE THERA.PEUTRIDES

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Harrison, V E F 1995. The allegorization of gender: Plato and Philo on spiritual childbearing, in Witnbush, V L & Valantasis, R (eds), Asceticism, 520-534, New York:

Oxford University Press. . · • . . ·

Hay, D M 1992. Things'Philo said and did not say about the Therapeutae, in Lovering, E H (ed), Society 0/ Biblical Literature 1992 Seminar Papers, 673-683, Atlanta:· Scholars Press.

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Kraemer, R S 1989. Monastic Jewish women in Greco-Roman Egypt: Philo Judaeus on the Therapeutrides. Signs 14, 342-3-70.

Martin, D B 1995. The Corinthian body. New Haven: Yale University Press.

Mattila, S L 1996. Wisdom, sense perception, nature, and Philo's gender gradient. Harvard Theological Review 89, 103-129.·

Richardson.' G P 1993. Philo and Eusebius on monasteries and monasticism: The Therapeutae and Kellia, in Mcl.eanv B H (ed), Origins and method: Towards a new understanding of Judaism and Christianity: essays in honour ·ofJohn C Hurd, 334- 359, Sheffield: ]SOT Press.

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