Apollos was a devout Jew born in Alexandria. Pope Benedict XVI says that the name "Apollos" was probably short for Apollonius or Apollodorus. Apollos' origin in Alexandria has led to speculations that he would have preached in the allegorical style of Philo. Theologian Jerome Murphy-O'Connor, for example, commented: "It is difficult to imagine that an Alexandrian Jew ... could have escaped the influence of Philo, the great intellectual leader ... particularly since the latter seems to have been especially concerned with education and preaching." Pope Benedict suggest there were those in Corinth "...fascinated by his way of speaking..."