Why Christians Should Really be Angry About that Opening Ceremony

If, like me, you’re a Christian who initially freaked out about ‘The Last Supper’ scene at the Paris Olympics, stick around for a second. Let’s talk.

The Famed Painting

The Last Supper is a painting by Italian painter Leonardo Da Vinci. He was a (possibly) gay man who purposefully painted Jesus, John the Baptist, and James (the brother of Jesus) in a “feminine”/androgynous way. Genderbending was a thing for Da Vinci. He’s an ar-teest.

Da Vinci’s faith is a bit of a mystery, but it’s suspected he was some type of Christian believer — maybe Catholic, although his beliefs didn’t quite fit the typical mold of Catholicism of the day. Letters he wrote showed he had a little beef with the state of the church. It was that same church that commissed the painting was commissioned, asking Da Vinci to paint The Last Supper. The rest, as they say, is history.

By all accounts, Da Vinci wouldn’t exactly be the poster boy for the church. He’s quite the opposite of what most evangelicals consider to be a ‘true Christian’.

Even so, most of us grew up with a variation of The Last Supper on our grandma’s walls. In clay, cheap canvas, ornate frames, metal impression, or kitschy knitted blankets, it’s been in nearly every Christian home (in some form or fashion) for the past 50 years.

And because of that, I guess I can see how people would closely associate it with their faith. But The Last Supper the painting is just that. A painting. An incredibly well-known, highly celebrated, intricate, historical, very significant painting. But a painting nonetheless.

The truth is, if Da Vinci had never painted The Last Supper, it would have absolutely no bearing on our faith. It would remain unchanged. It doesn’t change anything about what we believe or why we believe it. Like any religious artwork that adorns churches, homes, and holy places, whether it’s original or mass-produced by Hobby Lobby, it is beautiful and poignant — but not essential.

So why are Christians so offended about it being “mocked”?

The Opening Ceremony

The Olympics are a pagan event deeply rooted in ancient Greek mythology. The events were originally in honor of Zeus and involved multiple (sometimes totally nakey) sporting events as a show of strength. In 393 AD, emperor Theodosius I banned the games as part of his “get rid of all paganism” shtick since he’d recently converted to Christianity. So, this isn’t the first time Christians have had beef with the Olympics.

The crew responsible for designing the event, in typical Parisian and French fashion, wanted a big, bold, dramatic opening ceremony that gave a nod to the history of the Olympics and encapsulated many aspects of French culture. They also wanted to create a moment of inclusivity, to make everyone (including queer people) feel represented.

Thus, Thomas Jolly, the creative director of the opening ceremony clarified that the scene was not a depiction of The Last Supper, but an homage to Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and general partying/debauchery. (He’s called Bacchus in Roman mythology.)

As France is famous for its food, culture, and fashion, it makes sense they’d pay homage to the Greek/Roman god responsible for endless parties, great wine, and (kind of?) the Seine. Jolly expounds (and art historians weigh in) here.

Festivals for Dionysus have been held for thousands of years, so obviously Christians knew about them. Coincidentally our own Christian holidays often fall on pagan ones. For example, Christmas usually coincides with Winter Solstice even though Jesus was most likely born in the summertime. (Accident or on purpose? That’s up for debate).

The point is: You wouldn’t be surprised walking into a Quintin Tarantino film and seeing violence on the screen. You shouldn’t be surprised walking into a pagan event and seeing a depiction of paganism.

The Real Problem

Here’s the thing: All throughout history humans have had common themes woven through their religion. Just about every religion has a savior or “son of god” figure (Prometheus, Hercules, and Bhudda, for example), just about every religion has a creation story, and just about every religion has tales of sacrifice, triumph, and miracles. Humans have been telling similar stories about people like Jesus and Diyonysis for thousands and thousands of years.

If they had been making fun of Christianity or ‘tarnishing’ a holy image, that would certainly be worth getting upset over. (I admit, at first, I was a little hurt myself.)

But now that I know the facts about the intention behind the scene, I’m less concerned about an artistic re-enactment of a pagan festival happening at a pagan event, and more concerned with Christians who don’t know how to differentiate between a pagan scene and a Christian one.

Do you know the difference between scripture and Greek mythology? Do you know how to spot Jesus in a sea of Roman statues? It seems some Christians don’t. (The Apostle Paul sure could.)

The real problem Christians have (or should be having) with the 2024 Olympics Opening Ceremony: How well do we truly know the God we say we love?

In John chapter 14 Jesus spoke to a similar situation. He told his disciples “If you had known me, you would know the Father as well.”

Philip eagerly replied, “Show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.” To which Jesus replied (I imagine with sorrow and frustration), “Philip, have I been with you all this time and you still don’t know me?”

The disciples were struggling with the concept of his diety. It wasn’t that Jesus hadn’t clearly shown them who he was via his actions, attitudes, miracles, etc. It was that they couldn’t recognize him for who he was.

Was it that they couldn’t tell him apart from charlatans who had waltzed through the area before spouting claims of being the Messiah? Or was it because they couldn’t trust themselves — their own perception or belief — that he was the real deal?

Whatever it was, they wanted to believe and continued to seek out more proof. It’s what prompted Jesus to say in John 20:29 “You have believed because you have seen me. Blessed are those who have believed without seeing.”

As Christians, it’s our responsibility to emulate (be like) Jesus regardless of what the world around us is doing. That’s what “Christian” means. To be Christ-like. But in order to be like him, we have to first know him.

It’s perhaps the largest reason I see for the rise of white Christian nationalism in the United States. Many American Christians have made Christ in their own flag-waving, gun-toting image; an idol with values, behavior, and intentions that differ greatly from the Christ of scripture.

With that comes many Christians’ inability to think critically — to pivot with the arrival of new information and form sound Christlike opinions. If your assumption has been proven wrong and new evidence has come to light, your opinion should shift. Why are so many Christians bent toward offense when Christ’s heart posture is reconciliation, forgiveness, and mercy?

I think the biggest problem with that Opening Ceremony was that millions of Christians watched it and immediately registered it as having something to do with Jesus. Then even after gaining access to clarifying information, chose to remain angry instead of self-examining why that was.

If you’re a Christian still outraged over Paris, try asking yourself “Can I recognize Jesus? Or have I confused him with some other god?”

You may just find that the offense was in you — not Paris — all along.