Maimonides, best known as the great codifier of Jewish law and philosophic master of Jewish and medieval thought, is largely unappreciated for his role as a statesman and leader. Too little attention is devoted to texts that reveal Maimonides' empathic involvement with the community. This volume shows Maimonides as he led the Jewish people through an age of crisis; the epistles contained herein represent the philosopher's response to three critical issues of his day: religious persecution, the claims of Christianity and Islam, and rational philosophy's challenge to faith.