Olympics Opening Ceremony Criticized for ‘Offensive’ Drag Queen Parody of Last Supper2 min read
The opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics has come under criticism for featuring a scene that many perceive as a parody of the Last Supper, involving drag queens.
In this controversial performance, over a dozen drag queens were arranged along a long table in a tableau reminiscent of Leonardo da Vinci’s iconic painting, which portrays Jesus’ final meal with his disciples before his crucifixion.
Broadcast live from a rain-drenched Paris on Friday evening, the scene showed the drag queens moving suggestively along the table on either side of a woman who appeared to represent Jesus. Standing still at the center, she wore a headpiece resembling a halo and held her hands in a heart shape.
The scene quickly sparked backlash on social media, drawing particular criticism for seemingly including a child.
“However, it really was appalling to see Christianity so openly mocked in the opening ceremony with the unbelievably crass portrayal of the Last Supper,” he wrote on X.
Elon Musk, Tesla’s CEO who recently referred to himself as a “cultural Christian,” also weighed in on X, describing the performance as “extremely disrespectful to Christians.” He added in a subsequent post, “Christianity has become toothless.”
The performance was branded “woke” by some social media commentators, while others pointed out that the organizers would not have dared to mock Islam in such a manner.
American Catholic Bishop Robert Barron condemned the act as a “gross mockery of the Last Supper,” questioning why France chose to “mock this very central moment in Christianity” during an event intended to highlight the best of French culture. He further emphasized that France’s cultural identity “is grounded very much in Christianity.”
“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? As I say, we all know the answer to that,” he stated in a video posted on X.
Rev Daniel French, a podcaster, echoed the bishop’s sentiments, urging the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, to make a similar statement.
“The opening Olympic ceremony mocked Christianity and the Last Supper in a way it never would have for any other religion,” he remarked.
