Nor were these problems confined to Christian learned contexts: they were the subject of a number of similar reflections within the Jewish tradition as well. Jewish thinkers often considered natural science a mere system of hypotheses, which was capable of grasping only the superficial appearance of things, and was subordinate to the absolute truth offered by the Torah. This position was defended by authors such as Judah Loew ben Bezalel (also known as Maharal, 1520–1609), who posited a radical distinction between the natural world and the teachings of Torah, as well as Azariah Figo (1579–1547). In particular, Loew claimed that while it was possible to illuminate and explain the natural order of the physical world, this was not true of the relationship between God and his creation. This attitude was probably in part due to Jews’ sense of exclusion and marginalization from the institutions where natural philosophy was taught and practiced (an important exception to this rule was Italy, where personalities like Elijah del Medigo (circa 1458–1493) took advantage of the separation between science and theology in the universities). Nonetheless, all of these Jewish authors—both the Italian “free-thinkers” and those who defended the superiority of the Torah—still relied on Aristotle as the main authority for natural philosophy, and there were multiple attempts by philosophers like Ioseph ben Shem Tov (circa 1400–circa 1480) and Abraham Farissol (1451–circa 1525) to integrate the Stagirite within the Hebraic philosophical tradition. A minority of Jewish authors, including Moses Isserles (1520–1572), considered natural philosophy a useful tool for demonstrating the glory of God. 