Shul Runnings - Chronicle Online/The WORD 02/19/2026

Weekly On-line Rabbi's D'var-Torah

February 19, 2026

2 Adar 5786

Parashat Terumah

Shul Runnings. When my nephew told me that was the name of the Israeli bobsled team at this year’s Winter Olympics, I assumed he was joking. The Israeli bobsled team may be the most unlikely squad since the Jamaican team that inspired the film “Cool Runnings.” And yet, somehow, here we are. I did not expect the Yiddish word for synagogue to make its way to the Milan/Cortina Games. It may not be their official name, but it’s a terrific nickname. 

As heartwarming as the story is, it should surprise no one that the Israeli bobsled team has been met with antisemitism. The room where they were staying was broken into and some of their training equipment was stolen. One television commentator spent his entire run suggesting that the team should have been banned from the Olympics altogether. 

While this was unfolding in Italy, Deni Avdija of the Portland Trail Blazers became the first Israeli to start an NBA All-Star Game, representing the World Team against a group of American players. Like the other international athletes, Avdija wore his country’s flag on his jersey. If you looked closely, you could see the familiar blue star framed by two blue stripes on a white field. 

Spike Lee—one of the NBA’s most recognizable fans—arrived wearing an outfit featuring the black-and-white keffiyeh pattern alongside the Palestinian flag. LeBron James, by contrast, complimented Avdija’s game and said he looks forward to visiting Israel because he has only heard “great things.” Predictably, antisemites came after him on social media for daring to say something positive about the Jewish state. 

No one seems eager to single out Chinese athletes at these Olympics despite China’s persecution of the Uyghurs, which has led to the suffering and deaths of countless Muslims. And although Russia was formally banned from the Winter Olympics because of its war of aggression against Ukraine, Russian athletes are still permitted to compete under a neutral banner. The world, it seems, can distinguish between the actions of the Russian government and the individuals who happen to hold Russian passports. 

But when it comes to Israel, that distinction often disappears. Despite the fact that Israel’s war was defensive—Hamas were the aggressors—Israeli athletes are expected to answer for every allegation leveled against their country. Somehow, a bobsledder and a basketball player become stand-ins for geopolitical debates far beyond their control. 

Sports are supposed to remind us of our shared humanity. They offer moments when we see people who may seem different from us and recognize something familiar: talent, discipline, courage, joy. Sadly, some would prefer that Israelis be excluded from that humanizing spotlight. 

We are less than two weeks away from the Festival of Purim, when we retell the story recorded in the Book of Esther. The fate of the Jews turns on Esther’s ability to show King Achashverosh that Jews are people—no more and no less than the other residents of Shushan. Once the king sees that, Haman’s scheme to destroy a people simply for being different begins to unravel. 

Hopefully, Israeli and Jewish athletes will continue doing what athletes do best: competing with excellence and integrity, reminding the world that they are people—just like everyone else on the ice, on the court, and beyond. And perhaps, in those moments of shared humanity, we will begin to see a decline in the antisemitism that has become all too common.

Shalom,

RAF.