IV

The most famous example of speeches given in a synagogue were those given by King James I, Ramon de Penyafort and Friar Paul on the Saturday following the end of the famous Barcelona disputation of 1263.[31] This disputation took place in front of the King and prelates and was between a convert to Christianity, Friar Paul, and the then leader of the Jewish community Rabbi Moses b. Nahman (more often referred to as Nahmanides).[32] As to the events of the disputation themselves, we have two, more often than not, conflicting accounts. One Latin account by Friar Paul, and the other, much longer and more detailed in Hebrew, by Nahmanides.[33] Both participants wished to show that they came out ahead in the debate, and while scholars still dispute the different claims of both accounts, it is clear that as far as the Jews were concerned, it was not a pleasant affair.

Nahmanides tells us towards the end of his account, that `it was the wish of the king and the preaching monks to come to the synagogue on the Sabbath... and it was when they were there on the coming Sabbath that I answered the king well as it is fitting after he preached at length saying that Jesus was the Messiah.' After Nahmanides answered the King, Ramon de Penyafort got up and preached about the Trinity, and again Nahmanides replied and then Friar Paul made some remarks before being told to stop by his companions. We are then told `...and our master the King stood up and they all descended from before the ark and departed'.[34]

It is clear that this was no ordinary preaching visit to a synagogue. It came at the end of a long and hard fought debate, at the start of which Nahmanides had to ask the King to be allowed to speak and answer the Christian accusations freely and without fear of recrimination. This grant of freedom of speech clearly carried over to the synagogue, as Nahmanides allowed himself to answer all three speakers with confidence.[35] This was not the norm as the letters regarding preaching in the archives of the Kings of Aragon testify. The Jews were not encouraged, and would normally have been afraid, to reply. In many cases they would not normally have had a person of Nahmanides' learning and stature to rebut the friars' claims.[36] What is regrettably missing in Nahmanides' account is the question: when on the Sabbath did the preaching take place and if it was during a service, at what point in the proceedings?

The focal point of synagogues in Spain was the Tebah - a raised platform in the centre of the synagogue from where the Torah scrolls were read, and sermons were given.[37] For example, the preacher whose sermon is reported in Shem Tob Falaquera's Iggeret ha-Musar was `seated above the people' from whence he castigated the audience.[38] Sermons, if delivered during the Sabbath morning service, were generally given after the Torah and Haftarah readings, prior to the scroll being returned to the Heichal (`Ark'). Sometimes, sermons were preached later on the Sabbath day before the afternoon service.[39] There are many collections of sermons extant from this period. Rabbenu Bahya, the student of Solomon ibn Adret, published some of his sermons in a collection called Kad ha-Kemah (`A Jug of Flour'). Joshua ibn Shueib and Jacob Sakili, both disciples of Adret, also collected together their sermons for each week of the year and for special occasions.[40] Jacob Anatoli, not directly connected with Spain, but of considerable interest both as the son-in-law of Samuel ibn Tibbon, translator of Maimonides, and as a physician and translator in the court of Frederick II of Hohenstaufen, wrote Malmad ha-Talmidim (`Incentive to the Students'). Of course Nahmanides himself often preached and a number of his sermons are extant.[41]

Many of the derashot or sermons, like Llull's Christian-oriented ones, concentrated on moral and ethical issues and exhorted the community to keep a high standard of Jewish practice and life. These sermons generally began with the preacher asking permission from the audience to speak. This custom, with its origins in the time of the Mishnah, was supposed to be a foil against arrogance. However, by the thirteenth century, sermons would normally begin with a verse from Ketubim (`Writings'), most generally from the Book of Proverbs.[42] This might be followed by a quote from the biblical portion of the week and a suitable introduction, and would then generally deal with current issues or with exposition and commentary on the biblical portion of the week. The preacher would often take the opportunity to call for the people to repent of their evil ways and chastise them, and frequently the main thrust of the sermon would revolve around the fear of God, humility, piety and sanctity. The sermon would commonly end with a short prayer expressing the hope of the immanent arrival of the Messiah. Like the Christian preachers, the Jewish sermonisers would often make use of the mashal (`analogies or exempla'). As M. Sapperstein points out, it would be used `for clear and vivid expression of theological concepts otherwise difficult to understand'.[43] Some Rabbis suggested, as in the manner of the Christian preachers, `that the mochihim (`rebuking preachers') should speak in the streets of the city and the marketplace and in all places where people gather in order to make their words heard by the public'.[44]