The opening of the 2024 Paris Olympics came under intense scrutiny last weekend after what many considered a parody of the Olympics. Last Supper A drag queen appears. according to American MagazineThe drag queen scene was modelled as a parody of Leonardo da Vinci’s iconic mural, “The Last Supper,” in Milan’s Dominican monastery.
However, opening ceremony director Thomas Joly later explained that the inspiration for the scene came not from “The Last Supper” but from the Greek gods. Claim“Dionysus is the Greek god of celebration, so he comes to the table.” The scene was titled “Celebration.”
In a post, the official Olympic profile, X (formerly Twitter), explained that the depiction was a “call to attention the absurdity of inter-human violence.”
French bishops issued a statement on July 27 condemning the scenes at the Olympic opening ceremony.
They said the ceremony was “a magnificent display of beauty and joy, full of emotion and widely praised” but “unfortunately it also contained scenes of mockery and insult to Christianity, which we deeply regret.”
“We would like to thank the faithful of other religious denominations who have expressed their solidarity with us,” the French bishops wrote. “We think of all Christians on all continents who have been hurt by the outrageousness and provocativeness of this particular scene and want them to understand that the Olympic celebrations go far beyond the ideological prejudice of a few artists,” they added.
The bishops also said that the values promoted by sport and Olympism must contribute to “the unity and fraternity that our world so desperately needs, with sport at its heart, which unites us, and with respect for the convictions of all.”
Bishop Emmanuel Goubiard of Digne, the Holy See’s special representative for the Paris 2024 Olympics, said he was “deeply hurt” after seeing images of the drag queen table scene on social media.
“What shocked me the most is that the freedom of spirit and speech that these people claim should not be directed at other people,” Bishop Gobilliard said. “It’s okay to make fun of your own beliefs, to laugh at yourself. Why not? But to mock someone else’s beliefs, their religion, in this way… it’s very shocking. That was my first reaction.”
He argued that the Olympics was the last place to create such division.
“Why there?” asked Bishop Gobilliard in a conversation with OSV News. “It is against the Olympic Charter, against the dimension of unity embodied in the values of the Olympic Charter, against the idea of uniting everyone without political or religious demonstrations. Why exclude believers, Christians? It was the last place to do so. We should have respected the spirit of the Olympic Charter. It doesn’t matter now.”
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Pascal Deloche
