Hellenistic Judaism was a form of Judaism in classical antiquity that combined Jewish religious tradition with elements of Hellenistic culture and religion. Until the fall of the Roman Empire and the early Muslim conquests of the eastern Mediterranean, the main centers of Hellenistic Judaism were Alexandria in Egypt and Antioch in Syria (modern-day Turkey), the two main Greek urban settlements of the Middle East and North Africa, both founded in the end of the 4th century BCE in the wake of the conquests of Alexander the Great. Hellenistic Judaism also existed in Jerusalem during the Second Temple Period, where there was a conflict between Hellenizers and traditionalists.
The major literary product of the contact between Second Temple Judaism and Hellenistic culture is the Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Bible from Biblical Hebrew and Biblical Aramaic to Koine Greek, specifically, Jewish Koine Greek. Mentionable are also the philosophic and ethical treatises of Philo and the historiographical works of the other Hellenistic Jewish authors.Walter, N. Jüdisch-hellenistische Literatur vor Philon von Alexandrien (unter Ausschluss der Historiker), ANRW II: 20.1.67-120
The decline of Hellenistic Judaism began in the 2nd century, and the precise causes are not fully understood. Following the Roman suppression of the Diaspora Revolt (115–117 CE), Jewish populations in Egypt, including the large and influential community in Alexandria, as well as those in Cyrenaica and Cyprus, were eradicated. Jewish presence in these regions was not re-established until centuries later, without regaining their former influence. Over time, much of the Greek-speaking diaspora was incorporated into the rabbinic framework by the rabbis. Additionally, it is possible that some members of Hellenistic Jewry were marginalized, absorbed, or gradually became part of the Koine-speaking core of early Christianity centered on Antioch and its traditions, such as the Melkite Greek Catholic Church and the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch.
Background
The conquests of Alexander the Great in the late 4th century BCE spread Greek culture and colonization—a process of cultural change called Hellenization—over non-Greek lands including the Levant. This gave rise to the Hellenistic period, which sought to create a common or universal culture in the Alexandrian empire based on that of fifth-century Athens, along with a fusion of Near Eastern cultures.Roy M. MacLeod, The Library of Alexandria: Centre of Learning in the Ancient World The period is characterized by a new wave of Greek colonization which established Greek cities and kingdoms in Asia and Africa,Ulrich Wilcken, . the most famous being Alexandria in Egypt. New cities were established composed of colonists from different parts of the Greek world and not from a specific ("mother city") as before.
The spread of Hellenism caused a blending of the local indigenous culture and the culture of the conquerors. Jewish life in both Judea and the diaspora was influenced by the culture and language of Hellenism. Local indigenous elites frequently played a significant role in embracing and promoting Hellenism, leading to its impact on all regional cultures, including the Jewish culture. In Judea, Hellenism gradually took hold, despite the relatively small number of foreign settlers.
The Jews living in countries west of the Levant formed the Hellenistic diaspora. The Egyptian diaspora is the most well known of these. Indeed, there was firm economic integration of Judea with the Ptolemaic Kingdom that ruled from Alexandria, while there were friendly relations between the royal court and the leaders of the Jewish community. This was a diaspora of choice, not of imposition. Information is less robust regarding diasporas in other territories. It suggests that the situation was by and large the same as it was in Egypt.
The Greeks viewed Jewish culture favorably, while Hellenism gained adherents among the Jews. While Hellenism has sometimes been presented (under the influence of 2 Maccabees, notably a work in Koine Greek) as a threat of assimilation diametrically opposed to Jewish tradition,
Later historians would sometimes depict Hellenism and Judaism as uniquely incompatible, likely a result of the persecution of Antiochus IV. However, it does not appear that most Jews in the Hellenistic era considered Greek rulers any worse or different from their Persian predecessors. Writings of Hellenized Jews such as Philo of Alexandria show no particular belief that Jewish and Greek culture are incompatible; as another example, the Letter of Aristeas holds up Jews and Judaism in a favorable light by the standards of Greek culture. The one major difference that even the most Hellenized Jews did not appear to compromise on was the prohibition on polytheism; this still separated Hellenistic Jews from wider Greek culture in refusing to honor shrines, temples, gods etc. that did not pertain to the God of Israel.
Hellenistic rulers of Judea Under the suzerainty of the Ptolemaic Kingdom and later the Seleucid Empire, Judea witnessed a period of peace and protection of its institutions. For their aid against his Ptolemaic enemies, Antiochus III the Great promised his Jewish subjects a reduction in taxes and funds to repair the city of Jerusalem and the Second Temple.
Relations deteriorated under Antiochus's successor Seleucus IV Philopator, and then, for reasons not fully understood, his successor Antiochus IV Epiphanes drastically overturned the previous policy of respect and protection, banning key Jewish religious rites and traditions in Judea (although not among the diaspora) and sparking a traditionalist revolt against Greek rule. Out of this revolt was formed an independent Jewish kingdom known as the Hasmonean dynasty, which lasted from 141 BCE to 63 BCE and eventually disintegrated into civil war.
Hellenization of Jewish society Overall, Jewish society was divided between conservative factions and pro-Hellenist factions. Pro-Hellenist Jews were generally upper-class or minorities living in Gentile-majority communities. They lived in towns that were far from Jerusalem and heavily connected with Greek trading networks.Grabbe 2010, p. 10–16
The most significant literary achievement of Hellenistic Judaism was the development of the Septuagint. Other notable works include the Book of Wisdom, Sirach and pseudepigraphic apocalyptic literature such as the Assumption of Moses, the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, the Book of Baruch and the Greek Apocalypse of Baruch. Some scholars consider Paul the Apostle to be a Hellenist Jew, even though he claimed to be a Pharisee ().
Hellenistic Jews also created rewritten versions and expansions of biblical stories. As Erich S. Gruen points out, these writings show "a strong sense of identity and national self-consciousness."
Philo defended Judaism as a monotheistic philosophy that anticipated the tenets of Hellenistic philosophy. He also popularized metaphors such as "circumcision of the heart" to Greek audiences.E. g., Leviticus 26:41, Ezekiel 44:7
Hellenization was evident in the religious Jewish establishment:
The turbulence created by Alexander the Great's death also popularized Jewish messianism.
Diasporas
For two millennia, Jews lived in Greece and created the Romaniote Jewish community.The Holocaust in Greece: Ioannina. URL accessed April 15, 2006. They spoke Yevanic, a Greek dialect with Hebrew, Arabic and Aramaic influence. According to oral tradition, they were descendants of Jewish refugees who fled Jerusalem in 70 CE, after the destruction of the Second Temple. However, their presence dates back to 300-250 BCE, according to existing inscriptions. Greek philosophers such as Clearchus of Soli were impressed by Jews and believed they were descendants of Indian philosophers.Josephus, Flavius. Contra Apionem, I.176-183. Retrieved 6/16/2012 from http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=J.+Ap.+1.176&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0215. Elsewhere, Jews in Alexandria created a "unique fusion of Greek and Jewish culture".Karen Armstrong, *A History of God*, Ballantine Books, 1993, p. 216.
In addition to the Romaniote community, Jewish populations also lived further north in the Roman and Byzantine provinces of Illyricum, Moesia, and Thrace. These communities, sometimes referred to as Illyrian Jews, Jews of Slavia Graeca, or Pre-Ashkenazi Jews of the Balkans, consisted of Jews living in the imperial frontiers (limes) of the Balkans, often in garrison towns and trade cities along routes such as the Via Egnatia and Danube corridor. Imperial edicts from the Theodosian and Justinianic Codes reference Jewish populations in these regions, including rulings on synagogue property, trade, taxation, and religious rights—indicating an officially recognized and regulated presence in these frontier provinces.Theodosian Code 16.8.25 (423 CE); Justinian Code 1.9.13 (537 CE).Simonsohn, Shlomo. The Jews in the Byzantine Empire, 641–1204: A Political Study. Tel Aviv University, 1987.Roth, Cecil. A History of the Jews in Byzantium. Oxford University Press, 1947.Sharf, Andrew. Byzantine Jewry: From Justinian to the Fourth Crusade. Schocken Books, 1971.Wilken, Robert L. The Land Called Holy: Palestine in Christian History and Thought. Yale University Press, 1992.
These frontier Jews followed an eastern migratory route into Europe, distinct from the later western Mediterranean or Rhineland pathways. Archaeological remains from sites such as Stobi, Nicopolis ad Istrum, Ulpia Oescus, and Novae—including synagogue mosaics, epitaphs, menorah carvings, and dedicatory inscriptions—attest to their presence from the Hellenistic through early Byzantine periods.Popović, Mladen. "Jewish Epigraphy and Community Life in the Roman Balkans." In Studies in Ancient Jewish Epigraphy, Mohr Siebeck, 1999.Barkay, Gabriel. "Ancient Jewish Communities in the Balkans." Biblical Archaeology Review, vol. 27, no. 3, 2001.Fine, Steven. The Archaeology of Judaism in the Roman World. Brill, 2001.Nikolaou, Angelos. "Jews in the Balkan Peninsula During the Roman and Byzantine Periods." In Jews in the Balkans: History and Culture, ed. Leon Sciaky. Thessaloniki Historical Press, 2003.
By the early medieval period, many of these Balkan Jews migrated northward into the Carpathian Basin, where they became part of the Jewish communities under Magyar and later Hungarian rule. Over time, they were gradually absorbed into the emerging Ashkenazi population, bringing with them Greek-speaking traditions and liturgical customs distinct from Babylonian rabbinic norms.Patai, Raphael. The Jews of Hungary: History, Culture, Psychology. Wayne State University Press, 1996.Ben-Sasson, H.H. A History of the Jewish People. Harvard University Press, 1976.Wexler, Paul. The Non-Jewish Origins of the Sephardic Jews. SUNY Press, 1996.Goldstein, Eric L. "The Eastern Ashkenazic Frontier: Towards a Historical Geography of Jewish Migration in the Middle Ages." Jewish Social Studies, vol. 13, no. 3, 2007, pp. 24–51.
Aftermath
Impact of the Diaspora Revolt In the early second century CE, Hellenistic Jewish communities across the Roman Near East suffered a catastrophe during the Diaspora Revolt (115–117 CE). A wave of violent uprisings—driven by messianic fervor and hopes for the ingathering of exiles and the reconstruction of the Temple—erupted simultaneously among Jewish communities in Egypt, Cyrenaica, and Cyprus. Some scholars suggest the revolts may have been intended to initiate a return to Judea. The Roman response under Emperor Trajan was exceptionally harsh, and has been described by modern historians as ethnic cleansing or genocide. The once-thriving Jewish populations in Egypt, Cyrenaica, and Cyprus were nearly annihilated, and evidence of Jewish presence in these regions vanished for centuries.