Did Rambam Recant All His Philosophy and Become a Kabbalist at the End of His Life?

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!This afternoon (3/8/22), in our Rambam Bekius chavurah, we took up another side-topic chosen in part because of its Adar-appropriate "ve'nahafoch hu" theme, and in part just because I wanted to discuss it. As early as 1300 people have claimed that the Rambam recanted his philosophy and became a kabbalist at the very end of his life. The letter called "Megilat Setarim," allegedly written by the Rambam to his student R' Yosef ben Yehudah - the same student for whom he wrote the Moreh ha'Nevuchim - is filled with statements affirming the reality and superiority of "practical kabbalah," along with guidance in how to use divine names to work miracles. In today's shiur we took up R' Sheilat's view that this letter is a forgery, as are all hamfisted attempts to make the Rambam into a kabbalist. ----------מקורות:אגרות הרמב"ם (שילת) - נספח ב', אגרות מזוייפותרמב"ם - מורה הנבוכים א:סא-סב; הקדמה לחלק גרמב"ם - משנה תורה: ספר אהבה, הלכות תפילין ומזוזה וספר תורה ה:דKabbalah - www.encyclopedia.com----------The Torah content from now through Shushan Purim has been sponsored anonymously. This is the last sponsorship we have lined up. If you would like to sponsor a week's worth of content, you know how to find me!----------Bekius Disclaimer: see previous episodes ----------If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I can be reached at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.----------If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweissYouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweissBlog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.comGuide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.htmlAmazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel