There were several talking points from last night’s performance.
A renowned Catholic Bishop, who boasts almost 300k followers on social media, has slammed the portrayal of The Last Supper during last night’s Olympic opening ceremony in Paris as a “gross mockery”.
Bishop Robert Barron, who serves in the Diocese of Winona-Rochester in Minnesota, USA, and runs a YouTube series on Catholicism, took to social media this morning to criticise the controversial appropriation of one of the most ‘central’ moments in Christianity.
Friends, my thoughts on the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics. #Olimpiadas2024 #OlympicGames pic.twitter.com/xU1ljFMZft
— Bishop Robert Barron (@BishopBarron) July 27, 2024
While the much-anticipated launch gifted viewers with performances from Celine Dion and Lady Gaga, much of the discourse surrounding the event instead centred around the decision to include a woman with a decapitated head singing from the window of a building, and a group of drag queens imitating The Last Supper.
Bishop Barron, who describes himself as someone who “loves the Olympics”, revealed that he excitedly turned on the coverage of the extravaganza only to be met with a “gross mockery of The Last Supper.”
“France felt, evidently, as it tried to put its best cultural foot forward, that the right thing to do is to mock this very central moment in Christianity where Jesus gives his body and blood in anticipation of the cross,” he said.
He added: “It’s presented as this gross, sort of flippant mockery. France used to be called the eldest daughter of the church. Paris gave us Thomas Aquinas, Vincent DePaul and King Louis IX. France, who sent Catholic missionaries all over the world. France, whose culture is grounded very much in Christianity, felt the right thing to do was to mock the Christian faith.
“A question I would pose – and I think we all know the answer to it – would they ever have dared mock Islam in a similar way. Would they ever have dreamed of mocking in this gross, public way, a scene from the Quran. We all know the answer to that.”
The 2024 Paris Olympics has gone full Woke dystopian.
— Kyle Becker (@kylenabecker) July 26, 2024
The opening ceremony was filled with transgend*r mockery of the Last Supper, the Golden Calf idol, and even the Pale Horse from the Book of Revelation.
The Olympics has made it clear that Christian viewers aren't welcome. pic.twitter.com/LgawyE6YRX
Bishop Barron is recognised in the States as something of a ‘spiritual friend’ to the stars.
He has shared longform interviews with Hollywood actors such as Shia LaBoeuf, Mark Wahlberg and Ethan Hawke on his YouTube channel, and has uploaded over 1.4k videos ranging from sermon reading to performances of the Rosary.
A number of viewers took to social media expressing similar criticisms to those of Bishop Barron.
One user wrote: “The 2024 Paris Olympics has gone full Woke dystopian. The opening ceremony was filled with transgend*r mockery of the Last Supper, the Golden Calf idol, and even the Pale Horse from the Book of Revelation.
“The Olympics has made it clear that Christian viewers aren’t welcome.”
Another commented: “Wtf? The Olympic opening ceremony just used drag queens to mock the The Last Supper.”
One other person wrote: “The Olympics opening ceremony making fun of Christ and the Last Supper. Welcome to France 2024.”
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BBC presenter Clare Balding described the show as ‘weird and wonderful’, referencing what was the first time an opening ceremony hadn’t taken place in a stadium as the majority of the show took place on the river Seine.
The city’s landmarks took centre stage as the athletes sailed down the river on 85 boats as the rain hammered down.
The four hour show, which was opened by Lady Gaga, was interjected with the journey of the Olympic torch as it made its way through the capital until a series of French athletes past and present lit up a floating cauldron.
Though much of the show divided opinion amongst viewers and pundits alike, they were united on one key moment – Celine Dion.
Let the games begin!
— Celine Dion (@celinedion) July 26, 2024Sending love and luck to all competitors.
– Celine xx… #paris2024 #openingceremony pic.twitter.com/84aJP9AGjw
It was the first time the Canadian had performed in public since beginning her battle with Stiff Person Syndrome.
Dion stood on the Eiffel Tower and delivered a powerful and very moving rendition of Edith Piaf’s L’Hymne A L’Amour.
