Confusion in the dispute over “Last Supper” and “Feast of the Gods”

The trans presentation at the opening Olympic Games in 2024 made waves. First it was the mocking depiction of the “Last Supper”, now the Greek “Feast of the Gods”. A game of confusion about the secret common denominator.

The Vatican spoke up

Meanwhile, eight days late, the Vatican spoke out about the performance of “The Last Supper” during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. While a whole host of Catholic bishops expressed their horror, the Vatican’s special envoy limited himself to praising the “beautiful Olympic flame” during the first wave of outrage. After French bishops first raised their voices against the performance (Info), 24 bishops and 3 cardinals worldwide signed a letter demanding an official apology from the Olympic Committee.

The Vatican has now expressed its “sadness” over some depictions of the opening ceremony. This has offended many Christians. With the statement, the Vatican indicates that it joins those who in recent days have brought charges against “the insult of numerous Christians and believers of other religions.” (Source). At such “prestigious events” where the “whole world unites around shared values, there must be no innuendo that ridicules the religious beliefs of many people.” This was followed by a striking conclusion: “Freedom of expression, which obviously must not be questioned, finds its limit in respect for others.”

Other critical voices against parts of the opening ceremony performance include Donald Trump, Viktor Orbán (Prime Minister of Hungary).

The Lord’s Supper became the “feast of the gods”

What seems interesting is this media twist that the central performance was not the “Last Supper” at all. It was a production of Jan van Bijlert’s “Feast of the Gods”. This painting depicted a scene from ancient Greek mythology. A Greek “festival of the gods” and not the “Last Supper”. The responsible program director, Thomas Jolly, explained this himself. For this explanation, reference is made to the first press conference after the opening games.

Statement from program director

The following is the statement from program director Jolly:

“Our intention was never to be impertinent, or to be subversive as I said earlier. Our idea was simply that with this great diversity we wanted to collectively include everyone. In France we have freedom of artistic creation, that’s the first article in the law of freedeom of creation. I take advantage of it, like with other freedeoms we have in France, in this country, we’re lucky about that. There was no desire to give a more specific message, it was simply a Republican message. In France we’re allowed to love who we want, how we want. In France we can believe or not believe, in France we have a lot of rights and I wanted to convey these values throughout the ceremony.“

Statement from IOC press spokeswoman

The previous statement came from IOC spokesperson Anne Discamps:

“And clearly there was never an intention to show disrespect to any religious group. On the contrary I think that really tried to really intend to celebrate community tolerance. That was his word yesterday and looking at the result of the polls that we shared we believe that this ambition was achieved. If people have taken any offence we are of course really sorry.“

Neither Jolly nor Discamps referred to the “misunderstanding” that it wasn’t about the “Last Supper” at all, but about something “completely different.” On the contrary, they emphasized that they had hurt religious groups, even though this was not their intention. If it was obvious that this was a mix-up, why wasn’t this clearly communicated in the first explanation? Instead, this explanation of an alleged misunderstanding was only made in the addendum.

Vatican declaration in Francis’ handwriting

Catholic bishops and cardinals are going to the barricades because of this production. Complaints and outrage also come from evangelical circles in the USA. Even purely “cultural Christians” like Elon Musk see a red line being crossed. The Vatican has now given its two cents, but Pope Francis personally is still remaining silent. However, the Vatican’s statement certainly contains the Pontiff’s handwriting.

The headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church is not explicitly bothered by the Last Supper scene depicted, but rather by the fundamental mockery of “a” religion. It is not the mockery of Jesus Christ that seems offensive, but rather the “crossing of a limit after which there should no longer be freedom of expression.” Such performances, which are capable of hurting other religious communities, contradict the idea of ​​a united humanity. This is clearly (Jesuit) Francis’ manuscript.

Evangelical special role

The Evangelical Church in Germany is particularly prominent in this matter (EKD). These once Protestant churches no longer seem to understand how such a spectacular performance could be turned into such a drama. This performance is not an expression of disrespect for the Lord’s Supper, but rather against queer people, according to Gereon Terhorst, a research assistant at the Seminar for Practical Theology and Religious Education at the Evangelical Theological Faculty at the University of Münster (Source).

The handling of the opening ceremony repeatedly shows that there must be a better handling of film and TV, especially in the area of ​​church and theology, said Terhorst. According to the theologian, it was a depiction of Bijlert’s “Festival of the Gods” and not the Last Supper. The criticism against this performance at the opening ceremony was not well-founded and came from those who “take their own world view far too seriously” and do not deal with the peculiarities presented. When it comes to biblical texts, proper exegesis is expected. Why not also with films or TV shows? For Terhorst, there are “some exciting discoveries” to be made by theologians that are not apparent at first glance. That’s why it’s worth taking a closer look, says the theologian.

A comparison

The Protestant theologian calls for a “closer look.” The following is a depiction of a scene during the opening ceremony, including the painting “Last Supper” by Leonardo da Vinci.

Theologian Terhorst emphasized that the table was empty during the performance and therefore looked more like a catwalk than a table.

Because is “the depiction of the teacher’s table in ‘Harry Potter’ also an allusion to Da Vinci?” was the suggestive question of the Protestant theologian. But if you take a closer look, you’ll see something standing on the table in front of the “fat woman” with the 7-rayed crown disc. She herself is holding a bowl in her hand. Furthermore, it didn’t stop there, as what followed was a serving of a large tray of fruit and an almost naked man in a skin-tight, Smurf-blue suit.

The following illustration represents Bijlert’s “Feast of the Gods”. According to the delayed narrative, this was actually the re-enacted scene.

If this scene had been reenacted, a lyre would have suited the actress just as well as the man in the middle of the picture holds a lyre in his hand. A match would be found in the small child. Depicted in the banquet picture as a small, naked child, as was common in the 17th century, and in the scene depicted, a minor is also found in the middle of the trans hustle and bustle.

More Roman than Greek

It is quite possible that this is a kind of symbiosis. Outwardly clearly depicted as the “Last Supper”, but in a “theological” sense linked to pagan gods. According to the widespread media announcements, it was a depiction of Greek mythology. The figures depicted in the picture and their names point more to Roman mythology(Source). The picture by Jan van Bijlert depicts Apollo, Minerva, Diana, Venus, Cupid, Mars, Hebe, Flora, Neptune, Bacchus and Eris.

The characters on “Feast of the Gods”

Apollon also had a place in Roman mythology. He is considered the “god of light and spring” in both Greek and Roman languages. In the picture shown in the middle, the man with a “sham” behind his head and the lyre in his hand.

Minerva also seems particularly interesting here, as this name does not appear in Greek but in Roman mythology. The Greek image corresponds to Athena. One of the main areas of Roman Minerva was tactical warfare.

Another Roman, but not Greek, figure is Diana. The “goddess of hunting and childbirth”. She also represented the goddess of fertility. In Greek, Artemis stands for this.

Venus is clearly another “deity” from the Roman pantheon. The “goddess of love”, eroticism and beauty. In Greek this would be the name Aphrodite.

Cupid is the male counterpart of Venus and also from the Roman pantheon. The “God of Love”. The Greek Aphrodite also has a male counterpart, Eros.

Mars was one of the central gods of Rome. The “God of War”. In Greek, this deity would correspond to Ares.

Hebe is the first name from Greek mythology to appear. She was the “goddess of youth.” The Roman pantheon also has an equivalent for her, the goddess Iuventa.

Flora can again be found in the Roman Pantheon. The “Goddess of Flowers”. In Greek mythology, this is what Chloris stands for.

The Neptune shown is more of a Roman exclusive. Similar to the Greek Poseidon, but still not the same. A “great family” gathers around Neptune. His parents are Saturnus and Ops, his brothers are Jupiter and Pluto. Neptune and Jupiter rule the “upper world”.

Bacchus is the nickname of Dionysus, the “god of wine, madness, intoxication and ecstasy”. A specialty of Greek mythology. In Roman this figure can be found in Liber pater.

Eris is a Greek representation. She was the “goddess of discord and strife.” She is the daughter of Nyx and has a sister, Ares. The Roman Pantheon has the same figure called Discordia.

Various inconsistencies

Now there is still an inconsistency in the list of “gods”. This scene is not about an ordinary drinking session, but about the festivities surrounding the wedding of Peleus and Thetis. Peleus was king of Phythia and Thetis was a sea nymph. The gods were invited to the wedding and, according to mythology, a “goddess” was explicitly not invited. This was Eris, the “goddess of discord.” However, it is included on this list. Conversely, the name of a significant figure is missing from the picture. This is the dancing guy with goat feet. This is clearly the “god” Pan.

This “deity” Pan is a hybrid creature with a human upper body and the lower body of a goat. In Greek mythology he represents a “shepherd god”, today also seen as a “god of nature and the forest”. Pan is an opponent of the “god” Apollo, the “god of light”. Both had a competition of instruments. Pan played his pan flute and Apollo played his lyre. Apollo won the victory.

Pan was not an unknown figure in Christianity since the Middle Ages and was therefore not unknown to the artist of this picture. Pan stands for Satan. Depicted with horns on the head and the corresponding buck feet. A symbol of unbridled lust and intoxication.

Apollo with missing lyre?

This central figure, depicted in the “Last Supper Scene” during the opening games, has a conspicuous crown on his head. A sun disk with seven rays. This type of crown is not found in Christianity, nor directly in Greek mythology, but rather in the Mithraism of ancient Rome. This “god Mithras” was the “god of light” and did not have a lyre in his hand. Shown with a lyre in the picture by the artist Bijlert, but not in the scene in Paris.

This representation actually seems to be a mixture of the Last Supper and Greek and Roman mythology. For background, it must be mentioned that the name “Jesus” originally means “God saves”. The term “Christ” in this sense is not a name but a title. In Hebrew it is called “Messiah” and means nothing other than “anointed one”. Jesus Christ means “Jesus the Anointed”, or in this sense fully spelled out, “God saves through the Anointed”.

In Roman Mithraism, Mithras is also an anointed one (messiah) who appears every morning in his chariot in the east (as the sun) to save the world. Mithras, the “anointed savior of the world”. A mythology that has amazing parallels in Catholicism (Info). This Mithras has “earthly soldiers”, his helpers and accomplices. He marks these loyal followers with an “X” on their forehead (Info).

An act of confusion

An obvious confusion. This applies to this production at the opening games as well as to the media’s treatment of the topic for debate as to whether it was the “Last Supper” or the “Feast of the Gods”. Both alternatives are clearly against Jesus Christ and the gospel. In the “Last Supper” it is the mockery of Jesus Christ by the depicted Mithras and in the case of the “Feast of the Gods” it is the highlighting of Satan in the form of the “god Pan”.

The “Feast of the Gods”, a visibly exuberant celebration with lots of wine, lust and drunkenness. A parallel to this is the “Whore of Babylon” from Revelation 17 (Info). She makes all kings and nations drunk with her wine. Everyone drinks (or boozes) their wine and becomes drunk with it, unable to tell what game is actually being played.

Therefore, it fits into the picture that the Vatican only has the unification of humanity in its sights on this topic and not the completely anti-Christian display of this transsexual idea. It is the interest of the Roman Catholic institution based in Rome that Roman customs from the ancient Roman Empire and its Roman pantheon come into play here and not the Gospel.

Bible verses from King James Version

The IOC’s first press conference after the opening games. Statement on the “state of affairs”.