Two Cover Letters to Ḥalfon ben Nethanel

These cover letters, written in Judeo-Arabic, came with a package of letters sent from Spain to Alexandria that Abū Naṣr forwarded to Ḥalfon ben Nethanel ha-Levi, and they convey important information about Judah ha-Levi’s final days in Egypt. Abū Naṣr writes here of Judah’s risky attempts to convince a converted Muslim to return to Judaism and of the resultant court case. The penalty from the Muslim authorities for returning to Judaism would have been death. Although this case involved individuals of exceptional status, who therefore might have been offered more leniency, the organization of the Islamic court system and its willingness to trust the oath of a Jewish man also elucidate the general status of Jews as a religious minority.