Sir Moses Montefiore was a religious philanthropist who worked tirelessly on behalf of his brethren worldwide, and especially in the Land of Israel. He dispensed large sums toward charitable causes and founded numerous establishments and institutions. Sir Montefiore traveled far and wide to visit Jewish communities and interceded on their behalf before rulers such as Queen Victoria, Czar Alexander the Second, the Ottoman Sultan, and the pope. He lived to the ripe old age of 100, passing away on 16 Menachem Av 5645 (1885).
Read a biography: Sir Moses Montefiore
Thoughts can give life. Thoughts can kill.
For example, a soldier. The Torah commands a soldier at war, “Do not allow your heart to weaken. Do not fear. Do not panic.”
Imagine this: An army is racing towards you. Your eyes have witnessed their savagery. How can you command your heart not to fear?
Maimonides explains: Don't think those thoughts and you will not fear. Dodge them as you dodge a flying arrow.
Because such thoughts threaten not only your life, they endanger the entire nation.
A soldier must think only one thought: What must I do right now?
Today, we are all soldiers.