JACOB ANATOLI, son-in-law of the noted translator of Maimonides’ Guide for the Perplexed, Samuel ibn Tibbon, was the first philosophically trained Jew who left a record of his sermons. In the second quarter of the thirteenth century, he began to present homilies at wedding ceremonies or celebrations, though he notes that he did not have time to write down even a single line of what he said: ‘Then, as I got used to this discipline, I agreed to preach a little publicly each sabbath. But not long afterwards, I retreated from this path, seeing that it was considered improper by some of my companions.’ The book into which he incorporated his homiletical oeuvre, Malmad hatalmidim, contains several references to the opposition his preaching engendered.

The sermons themselves reveal an exegetical orientation, focusing on the Wisdom books of the Bible and the weekly lesson from the Pentateuch. Their philosophical content does not appear to be radical or obviously problematic, and Anatoli actually dissociates himself from extremist philosophical positions. Nevertheless, he was aware of the potential for opposition: ‘Although I am aware that this novel interpretation will be regarded as overly presumptuous, some men of learning even branding it as totally fantastic, nonetheless I persist in advancing it, willingly subjecting myself to their disparagement and revilement.’ In another sermon:

And in yet another: