"The expulsion from Spain in 1492 did not only result in the destruction and dispersion of Spanish Jewry, but led to a crisis in Jewish faith. Riots, forced conversions, economic and legal discrimination ended a long history of Spanish Jews enjoying material and cultural success. These external pressures produced internal confusion and conflict between those who continued the philosophical enterprise of Maimonides and those who believed that philosophy had undermined Jewish faith."--BOOK JACKET.