I trust you have heard of the Tefillin Campaign, which is of particular import to Jewish servicemen, for whom the mitzvah of tefillin is one of special significance.
For, as you no doubt know, one of the properties of the mitzvah of tefillin is that it instills fear into the hearts of our enemies, in line with the comment of our Sages on the verse, “And when all the peoples of the earth will see that the Name of G-d is called upon you, they will fear you,” which, as our Sages observe, refers to the tefillin worn on the head.
This is why a Jewish soldier should be particularly careful to put on tefillin every weekday, and should encourage his fellow Jews to do the same, whether on active duty or otherwise.
For the essential aspect of an army is not to fight but to deter, to discourage the enemy from attacking or engaging in warlike actions.
(Letter, 5730)
