Olympic Opening Outrage
30 July 2024 Hits:5053
I’ve just had seven weeks off—my first long service leave in 32 years of leading Bayside Church. My time away included a break from social media. But that all changed on Monday, my first foray on Facebook for almost two months. And what greeted me? Numerous posts from Christian people who were outraged about the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics.
Now, it wasn’t the entire ceremony that got their goat; it was just one scene, an apparent mockery of Leonardo da Vinci’s painting of the Last Supper by, wait for it, drag queens.
Christian Outrage
Our history is rich with instances of Christian outrage. When I transitioned from atheism to following Jesus in the late 70s, I was a DJ on a commercial rock radio station. The Christians I encountered were outraged about Rock ‘n’ Roll being the ‘devil’s music.’ We were cautioned about backward masking and how the drums in songs could summon evil spirits. This influenced me for a while, and there was pressure from my church to leave my radio job and stop playing ‘that’ music. I resisted the pressure, and I’m grateful I did. Radio has been a rewarding career for me. When I established Bayside Church, I supported myself, my wife, and my family for many years by working on the radio, as the church couldn’t afford to pay me much.
The outrage has shifted through the years from the satanic panic of the 1980s to the New Age movement and various movies and works of art. In 1988, Martin Scorsese’s movie The Last Temptation of Christ caused an uproar from multiple churches. The commotion gave the film all the free publicity it needed, and people went to see what they weren’t supposed to see. If Christians had ignored it, the movie would have flopped.
The same happened with an artwork called Piss Christ, a 1987 photograph by the American artist and photographer Andres Serrano. It depicts a small plastic crucifix submerged in a glass tank of the artist’s urine. Due to the controversy, Serrano received death threats, hate mail and lost grants. What if Christians had used the photo as an example of the gospel and presented the good news of Jesus entering the mess of humanity? But all we did was complain.
Nothing’s Changed
What concerns me most is that our default mechanism often appears to be outrage. We hear or see something and go straight to anger rather than calmly investigating the facts. We need to strive for a Christlike response, one that is rooted in love and understanding.
If people had done that with Andres Serrano’s photo, they would have realised it was a protest by the artist, who was concerned that people wore the crucifix as a fashion accessory rather than acknowledging it as an instrument of torture and death. To quote his own words, “When you see it, you’re not horrified by it at all, but what it represents is the crucifixion of a man.” What if we had listened and asked and investigated rather than protested? Piss Christ would have made a tremendous springboard for Christians to share the gospel—the message people need to hear from us, the message Jesus told us to spread—but all they hear is us whining. However, we still need to learn the lesson, as evidenced by many complaints about the scene at the Olympic Opening this week.
Appropriate Outrage?
If we had just calmed down, asked questions and investigated the truth, we’d have discovered that the scene had nothing to do with da Vinci’s The Last Supper but was a nod to Greek mythology and the Greek god Dionysius, the god of celebration connected to the gods of Olympus from which the Olympic games were named. The ceremony’s artistic director, Thomas Jolly, said, “You will never find in me a desire to mock and denigrate anyone.” This underscores the importance of investigating the truth before reacting, as it could prevent unnecessary outrage.
So, what have outraged Christians achieved? Has anyone heard the good news about Jesus? Are people getting the message that God loves them and has reconciled them to himself? Not at all. All they hear is the same droning from Christians who get irritated when they don’t get their way. Our actions and attitudes are the opposite of Christlike behaviours and the teachings of Scripture. We must remember that our main goal as Christians is to become increasingly like Jesus and reflect his nature to the world he loves, the world he died to save. This should guide our response to controversial issues.
Paul’s Writings
Paul often used the Olympic games as examples of Christian living in his letters. (Consider 1 Corinthians 9:24-27; 1 Thessalonians 2:19-20; Galatians 5:7; Hebrews 12:1-3. There are many other references, and I encourage you to explore them).
And here’s the thing: There wasn’t a hint of outrage in anything Paul wrote about the Olympics of his day. Not once did he warn Christians not to attend the games, which were centred around pagan worship of foreign gods. Paul didn’t fume that all the athletes who competed in the games from 776 BC to 393 AD did so thoroughly naked. He did not complain that only men were allowed to attend the games. Women were banned. Paul’s tent-making in Corinth with Priscilla and Aquila likely was to build the athletes’ accommodation for the games. Maybe Paul was a fan.
But Emperor Theodosius changed all that in 393 AD by banning the games as a blasphemous pagan festival because he was a, you guessed it, Christian. The modern Olympics were resurrected in 1896 with clothed athletes.
Fun fact: the word gymnasium comes from the Greek word gymnos, which means “naked.” So, if you’re an outraged Christian and you go to a gym, you might like to reconsider.
Jesus Outrage
What made Jesus angry? It’s an essential question because it serves as a model for legitimate indignation.
Jesus was outraged by:
- Anyone who harms children.
- Religious hypocrisy.
- Resistant, inflexible religious people.
- Religious institutions that exclude vulnerable or marginalised people.
Jesus taught his followers the law of love: love God, love one another, love your enemy, and love your neighbour. He said to treat others as you would like them to treat you. He explained that when we feed the hungry, visit the sick or prisoners, and welcome the stranger, it’s as if we were doing those things for Jesus himself. These are the things the followers of Jesus are to be known for, and plenty of that is happening quietly and without fanfare.
But the world invariably hears our complaining, as it has once again heard this week. Our message is good news, and anything we do or say that detracts from the main message is an enemy of the gospel. How about we stop getting offended on Jesus’ behalf and get on with the incredible work he’s called us to?
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Rob Buckingham
Senior Minister
19 replies on “Olympic Opening Outrage”
Glad to hear some sense, Rob. I found the ceremony confusing, but once I read about the various aspects it made sense. Bravo to the French for thinking outside the box (stadium) and attempting something incredible in very trying conditions, too!
What an intelligent and interesting response.
Thank you Pastor Rob for always opening peoples hearts, ears and eyes.
I was hoping to hear some common sense after calmly replying to a number of posts!
Your historic enlightenment and study is refreshing to the soul. Thanks Rob
Stop making so much sense Ps. Rob. 😂 Still teaching me all these years later. Love, your favourite back-slider.
One of the best commentaries so far. Insightful and inspiring.
Amen.
Hi Pastor Rob
An interesting point of view – one among hundreds of thousands. But perhaps you may have a point because all are fallible. Yet, Scripture reflects our God’s precise promise in Genesis 9:13 quote “ I do set my (rain)bow in the cloud, and it is a token of my covenant between me and the earth”. This is The most clear all inclusive promise. Fast forward to the words of Jesus Christ written by the apostle Mark “….. all sin is forgivable except blasphemy. All are under His Cloud by day Fire by night.
Paul’s analogy of using the Olympics in the Christian way of life expresses the conviction, commitment and the clear objective with this life is lived – without back sliding, which we all fall short of – again all are fallible. Can you imagine how many would be completing that race to the finish line if many if not all understood what Paul is impressing upon?
I suppose the events of the Paris Olympics poor form will be etched in the hall of fame like the others cited in your above blog. In Gods timing, each will be touched to the point of realisation when ready. In Him.
PS. As a listener to easy music, I enjoyed your early DJ days and also following the change through your course of life. I’m sure it is an inspiration and blessing to many.
Even the artistic director “Jolly” admitted it was inspired by the last supper painting. In French it is a play on words. Jesus was offended at children being led astray. Millions of children watched that filth! If we turn a blind eye and say nothing when our God is deliberately denigrated, the world thinks it is ok and even accepted. In our peaceful protest, there is a witness in how we respond, most others respond in hatred and violence, we protest by confirming what they did was wrong and praying for their deliverance from evil.
Hi Helen. Some news outlets, including Sky, reported an unnamed source saying, “Thomas Jolly took inspiration from Leonardo da Vinci’s famous painting to create the setting.” But Jolly himself said he didn’t base his work on da Vinci’s work. In either case, why are we defending an artist’s impression of an event that occurred 1500 years before the artist was born?
Could it be possible Thomas Jolly is telling a lie with his explanation, how could we just blindly trust and believe him?
What is your Christlike response to transgenders grooming children ?
What is your Christlike response to the threesome scene?
A family friendly opening ceremony??
Maybe people should watch the ceremony before having an opinion
i watched it and it was pure evil and it should be called out for being so
calling evil good and good evil
Totally agree Leanne. There are no ifs or buts, it just goes against everything the bible says.
Hi Leanne. Yes, Thomas Jolly may be lying, but I am not his judge. I can only comment on what he has stated publicly. As for your other questions, they are beyond the scope of this blog’s topic, but I will provide brief answers:
What is your Christlike response to transgenders grooming children? Anyone who grooms a child(ren) should be reported to the appropriate authorities. I wish churches had diligently protected precious children over the decades.
A family friendly opening ceremony? I’m not sure what this is.
What is your Christlike response to the threesome scene? I don’t know anyone in this “scene”, but I don’t support the practice. I believe couples should protect the sanctity of their relationship.
I think back to the 1992 Barcelona Olympics opening, which was done with class, with opera singers, flamenco dancing, and the like. This opening ceremony had no class. They went for crass instead of class.
I am normally progressive and tend to agree with Rob. However, this time, I am a little critical. I certainly wasn’t outraged but I think the threesome scene plus the supper scene was tacky and in poor taste generally. The rest of the opening (90%) was excellent especially against the backdrop of the wet conditions.
Hi David. My blog was not a critique of the entire opening ceremony. I only interacted with the supposed part that Christians were offended by.
If the Lord Jesus has been faithful to you, why can’t you be faithful to Him and stand up for righteousness? You are also causing so many others to get on the same path as yourself. When I stop being angry, I will pray for you!
Thank you Ps Rob. (no opinions on the opening ceremony, as I did’t watch it.)
So, it turns out that Jan van Bijlert’s painting The Feast of the Gods (1635) was directly inspired by da Vinci’s The Last Supper (1498).
Walther Schoonenberg, a Dutch historian and vice president of an association dedicated to historic preservation, explained that the Olympic opening ceremony didn’t try to depict The Last Supper at all. Instead, it showed a completely different painting: Jan Van Bijlert’s The Feast of the Gods. He said, “The similarity between them is explained by the fact that Jan van Bijlert was apparently inspired by the fresco in 1635 to depict the pagan feast.”
“The scene shows the pagan gods gathered on Olympus for a feast. Apollo is recognisable by the halo of the sun, Bacchus (Dionysus) by the grapes, Neptune (Poseidon) by his trident, Diana (Artemis) by the moon, Venus (Aphrodite) by Cupid.”