‘Saddened’ Vatican Finally Wades Into Olympic ‘Last Supper’ Row
More than a week after Paris opening ceremony, Holy See condemns apparent recreation of iconic biblical scene.
MAURO PIMENTEL/Getty
The Vatican has finally given its two cents’ worth on the controversy surrounding the apparent recreation of Jesus’ Last Supper in a section of the Paris Olympic opening ceremony.
The performance in question featured drag artists, a transgender model, and other performers gathered around a long table that appeared to recreate Leonardo Da Vinci’s famous painting “The Last Supper”—which captures the moment Jesus reveals his betrayal by Judas Iscariot.
The tableau near the end of the ceremonyprompted a torrent of right-wing and ecclesiastical outrage, including from former President Donald Trump—but the Vatican remained curiously silent.
Finally on Saturday, eight days after the event and with Paris organizers insisting that it was all a misunderstanding, the Vatican gave up its thoughts.
“The Holy See was saddened by certain scenes at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games and cannot but join the voices raised in recent days to deplore the offense done to many Christians and believers of other religions,” it said in a statement reported by the New York Post.
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“At a prestigious event where the whole world comes together to share common values, there should be no allusions ridiculing the religious convictions of many people. The freedom of expression, which is clearly not called into question here, is limited by respect for others.”
Following its airing, right-wing media and pundits were in a frenzy, calling the display blasphemous.
Organizers initially confirmed that the tableau had been based on the 15th century painting by Da Vinci, but artistic director Thomas Jolly later insisted it had been inspired by a 17th-century Dutch painting, “The Feast of the Gods,” showing mythological Greek gods in an Olympian feast.
“My wish isn’t to be subversive, nor to mock or to shock,” Jolly said. “Most of all, I wanted to send a message of love, a message of inclusion and not at all to divide.”
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