Did the Olympic Opening Ceremony Imitate the Last Supper?
If you were watching the opening ceremony for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games on Friday, you probably noticed a controversial scene supposedly depicting Leonardo Da Vinci’s The Last Supper. A group of drag queens dressed up and seemingly mocked the famous scene, with one also dressing up as the Greek god Dionysus.
The depiction was the cause for a lot of comments shared online. Many Christians were upset at the blasphemous scene. Many of those who identify as LGBT found it entertaining. Some pointed out how the Olympic directors would never take a similar risk in making fun of Islam.
The artistic director of the ceremony, Thomas Jolly, rejected the notion that the ceremony was inspired by The Last Supper, instead, the ceremony portrayed a Greek pagan feast. Olympic organizer Anne Descamps claimed the ceremony was about celebrating community tolerance.
Hugo Bardin, however, let the cat out of the bag. Bardin, who took part in the ceremony as a drag queen, said “What bothers people isn't that we’re reproducing this painting [The Last Supper], what bothers people is that queer people are reproducing it.”
Regardless, the resemblances to the Da Vinci painting are uncanny. The point of view of the depiction, the fact that all the attendees of the festival are all on one side of the table and the emphasis on the centermost attendee of the feast.
The French Bishops’ Conference officially denounced the depiction as a mockery. It is a testimony to how far France has fallen, a country that was once a stronghold of Catholicism and Christianity is now producing blasphemous imagery on the world stage to open the Olympics.
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