Letter to Maimonides

In this Hebrew letter, Jonathan ha-Kohen writes to Maimonides directly to ask him for a copy of his Guide of the Perplexed, the reputation of the book having spread to southern France, where he lived. The Jewish community of Lunel had attempted to contact Maimonides for the same reason in 1195 or 1196 but received no reply. They did acquire a copy of two of the three books of the Guide in Arabic and asked the famous translator Samuel Ibn Tibbon to translate them into Hebrew. The books had further whetted their appetite, so Jonathan wrote to Maimonides on behalf of his community to ask for the full volume. Later, Maimonides responded, enclosing the last section of the Guide in Arabic.