From the publishers : Between Reason and Faith by Isaac E. Barzilay discus- ses the opposition to rationalism which arose among Italian Jews in the late medieval and in the Renais- sance periods. By means of a series of monographs on the major spokesmen of the times, it presents the viewpoint of anti-rationalism as a continuous structured trend from the thirteenth century through the first half of the seventeenth. The author has evoked and analyzed the thinking of nine medieval Jewish intellectuals two of them, Jacob Anatoli and Zerabya Hen of Barcelona, representing the rationalist point of view. The others are by no means monolithic in their anti-rationalism but represent a variety of thought on this subject. Presented in this book are: Hillel Ben Shmuel of Verona, still somewhat ra- tionalist, an admirer of Maimonides, but more mode- rate in his approach than those who preceded him. He is important as an example of the opposition to ra- tionalism that arose within its own ranks. Isaac Abravanel, the great anti-rationalist literary figure who was still under the influence of Maimonides' Guide, yet was touched with transcendentalism and believed redemption close at hand. Joseph Ya'aves, of Cabbalistic proclivities, a critic of secular learning who believed that rationalism dried up the roots of religious integrity among the Jews and sowed seeds of scepticism and apathy. Joseph Ibn Yahya, who did not reject secular learning but believed that rational truth was not the road to immortality. Judah Moscato, the great musicologist, who held that secular learning and Judaism were part of a great synthesis which should accept as its standard the truth inherent in Judaism. Azariah Figo, who spent his youth in secular studies only to turn from them in later life and write: "Our Torah has no need for any external wisdom." And finally Judah del Bene who was the first of the Jewish thinkers not to be influenced by the Renaissance and who sought to prove the richness and beauty of the Hebrew language above alle others. All of the anti-rationalists conceived of Judaism as spiritual and functional rather than intellectual. All of them believed that rational truth alone would never bring man peace of mind nor satisfy his eternal quest for spiritual meaning in life. Professor Barzilay has focused on the intellectual background and individual concepts of each of these thinkers. His book is an important contribution to the understanding of medieval Italian-Jewish thought.