The problems of the Jewish πολίτευμα in Alexandria and their causes. The relevance of the idea of «ὁ μισόκαλος φθόνος» at the root of the conflict, according to Philo

Abstract

The Hebrew community, present in Egypt since time immemorial, constituted in Alexandria a πολίτευμα or civic body, with its own statute, integrated but at the same time differentiated from the common normative framework. Jewish singularities were evident through a series of concessions granted by different rulers. From the beginning the Jewish community was viewed with envy, but this situation, considered a privilege and rejected by the majority, over time generated a feeling of  repulsion and hatred that complicated coexistence in the metropolis, and It ended up manifesting itself in the persecution and attack on the Jews in 38 AD. C. In this article we analyze the meaning and relevance of the element ʽenvyʼ (φθόνος), to which Philo grants great importance within the treatise, in relation to the Alexandrian social conflict.