Ah, ça ira. N’est pas? An Olympic Disasterpiece.
1 Aug. 2024
Dear and gentle Reader,
My apologies for being absent for so long a period. I’m sure you’re famished for my wit and wisdom. Well, I have a veritable smorgasbord for you!
As you know, here in the States, we recently concluded a year of Eucharistic Renewal with the celebration of a National Eucharistic Congress, which by all accounts was well attended by Catholics of all ages. Shortly after, we had the opening ceremonies of the 2024 Olympics in Paris, and of course, the controversy that followed due to some elements of the said ceremony.
Now, I am, as some of you know, no enthusiast of any athletics, and so I do not watch the Olympics, but I do usually watch the opening ceremonies, which introduce the participating nations and their athletes, as well as highlight the history and culture of the host country. Some of them have been absolutely glorious, others, well, sad. I think this year’s opening ceremonies fell flat. I expected better of France and Paris. French history and culture is so rich. I expected to see something about Ste. Jeanne d’Arc, Napoleon, maybe DeGaulle and the French Resistance: I had hoped for a nod to the Gallic Celts, maybe even Charlemagne. I was disappointed.
For the most part, I found it shambolic and disjointed. There were some lovely moments. Celine Dion was great, although, she wasn’t French, but French-Canadian. Lady Gaga didn’t disappoint with her usual flair for the unusual spectacle, and I do love her singing voice. The apparent praise of The Terror was very odd and morbidly distasteful. If they wanted to highlight any revolutionary element, then they should have highlighted the Declaration of the Rights of Man. And then there came the tableau on the bridge. Oh my.
I found it to be tasteless, and a rather adolescent parody of the Last Supper of Christ, with its imitation of poses and positions in DaVinci’s mural. That painting is known world wide, and is somewhat cliché when it comes to portrayals of the actual event. I prefer other renditions of the event over DaVinci’s. Oh, and yes, I am very well aware that Jesus and the Apostles weren’t white European men of the Renaissance age. I mean, really, who doesn’t realize that? I know that they weren’t seated at a long table, but most likely reclined around a semicircular table. But, whatever the poses and settings, it’s the actual event that matters. That event is central to Christianity, especially to Catholics and Orthodox Christians, since it is the institution of the sacraments of Holy Orders and the Most Holy Eucharist. Yes, indeed I did feel offended to see it parodied, as did millions of others throughout the world.
Did some of the critics go overboard? I’d say some did, especially those who used less than charitable language in going after the artistic director and performers, some even as far as threatening harm and death. No Christian, no person of faith can ever justify such abuse. It’s a serious sin, as well as criminal. We can criticize what we find morally offensive without using hateful or violent language. We can, and should express our disgust, but in a rational and charitable way.
Did some of the defenders go overboard? Yes. Yes they did. First it was the revision of the narrative. “Yes, it was based on DaVinci’s ‘The Last Supper’.”, then a day or so later, “No, it was based on Jan van Bijlert’s ‘La Festin des Dieux’.” (Yes, you all know him and his works, don’t you?) Hmm, well which is it? At least two of the performers posted on the internet that “The Last Supper” was the target of the parody. One of them, Barbara Butch, who was the lady in the blue dress and halo-like headdress, was pressured by Olympic officials to delete her posting (but there are still screen shots of it).
Then came the backlash, that evidently they didn’t expect. Both the French and German Catholic bishop’s conferences condemned it. Many individuals leapt into social media to express disgust - either of the spectacle, or towards those who were offended. Some corporate sponsors began pull their revenue and ads from the Olympics as well. Even many individual Muslims (who view Jesus as a prophet second only to Mohammed) and Muslim news agencies condemned it. Then oddly, the International Olympic Committee deleted the footage of the opening ceremony from their site, as well as their social media accounts, without an explanation.
This was followed shortly by the artistic director & organizing committee’s “apology” saying that they were really, really sorry if it offended anyone, and that was not their intention. A proper apology is when I would admit to an offence and tell you that I’m sorry I did it. Theirs was disingenuous, shifting the blame on those were offended. Their apologies and subsequent explanations were almost comical in the continuing changes of the narrative. It was a masterpiece of gaslighting and plausible deniability. And, well, you know the rest.
Personally, I did find the scene offensive and tasteless. But, that scene will fade into obscurity soon enough. God and His Church have survived far worse attacks, far more biting satire, far more perverse mockery.
What has troubled me the most are the reactions. A priest friend of mine posted on a social media site, several well written, reasonable critiques of the scene in question, and on one of them I posted as response: “Well said, Father.” And then came the trolls, and my, how nasty they were. Now, don’t imagine, dear and gentle Reader, that they were all fire-breathing atheists. Some were, many were not, and indeed, many were self-identified Christians. It was smug, self-congratulatory, condescending snarkiness. It was “mansplaining” in a word. It assumed that anyone who had taken offence, including myself, was ignorant, delusional, a bigot, or a political extremist. Ah, see how these Christians love one another! It seems to me that their view of it was formed not so much by their faith as by their politics.
The trolling ranged from the puerile insults, which are easily shrugged off, to the amazing gaslighting apologetics. To sum the kinds up:
- You believe in nonsense and fairytales.
- You are so stupid. Don’t you know anything about
ancient Greek mythology. The Olympics are Greek, they’re
pagan. Duh!
- It wasn’t The Last Supper, it was a relatively unknown
painting by a relatively unknown painter (until I happened to
find it by an online search just before I took you to task).
- The Last Supper has been parodied before, doofus.
- Your faith must be very weak. Or, the old chestnut: Your god
must be very weak to need you to defend him.
- The indignant “How dare you!”. How dare you criticize this
when there’s so many other much more important things going
on in the world/church/society. You’re so narrow-minded.
- You disgusting right-wing conservative!
- It’s just art, loosen up.
- And of course, “You’re homophobic/transphobic”.
Yes, even some of my Christian brothers and sisters did their best to rip a chunk out of my flesh. I’d expect it from non-believers, or even from some of ultra “progressive” Christians. But some of those barbs were from people I’d consider well educated, kind, or my friends.
What is quite painful is that they do not want to acknowledge my being offended, nor that of so very many others. I can fully understand their disagreements. I can understand how some might see it as harmless, or a typically French thing. (Yes, the French, or I should say the Parisians, seem to revel in mockery of established things.) But to make light of others being offended, or to reduce it to a reaction of political conservatives is just, well, cruel and ignorant.
Now, I am not one, dear and gentle Reader, to blow my own horn. However, I will say that I am quite well educated, holding two Masters degrees, as well as continuing to educate myself in many subjects, well after my formal education ended in the last century. Despite my love of art, and reading about it, I had never heard of Mister van Bijlert, (who was Dutch, not French), nor his painting before. Perhaps it is well known in Paris. As for the tableau supposedly representing a feast of the gods, I could only see one there, who looked more like Papa Smurf than Dionysos. No Apollo, no Hera, no Athena, no Poseidon, no Hermes, just Dionysos, who actually had NOTHING to do with the bloody ancient Olympics. Those were held in honour and worship of Zeus. Oh, and the pagan Olympics ended in the Fifth Century AD. The modern games were founded purposefully without any kind of homage to any diety or religion. And, dear Reader, from what I can glean from art history, it seems that Mister van Bijlert designed his painting as a parody of DaVinci’s “Last Supper”. Hmm. Yes, it was a piece of performance art, but art always has a message. I’m sure that the director was honest when he stated it was about festivity and inclusion. However it seems that inclusion doesn’t extend to traditionally-minded people. Yes, DaVinci’s painting has been parodied before, but that doesn’t excuse this one. After all, as your mother would have said, “If everyone is jumping off the bridge, would you do it too?”.
As for my belief, if it is nonsense, then why does it matter to a convinced non-believer. I think most atheists would simply say, “He has the right to believe whatever he wants, and it doesn’t matter to me in the least.”. It’s the anti-theists who have a problem with my belief, and the beliefs of any other person holding to a religion. As for my faith being weak, I can only say that it is not perfect, and thus I pray, “Lord, increase my belief”. But, for a stranger online to judge the quality or quantity of my faith, now that is just ridiculous. As for the charge of not being in an uproar about other terrible events, that seems disingenuous. Those that hold that seem to imagine that I am incapable of caring about more than one thing at a time. Now, gentle Reader, I may not be a multitasker, but I can assure you that I am concerned about such issues as child abuse, injustice, greed, violence, war, and so forth, WHILE being concerned with a tasteless spectacle that was not a local, but a world-wide broadcast for a sporting event that is supposed to be free of any politics or ideologies.
No, dear Reader, God does not need me to defend Him, but His Church does need me to defend that which is most sacred and central to the Catholic Faith: the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. As a priest, I am privileged with being able to offer Mass each day, which I do, unless serious illness prevents me. Even during the two month-long lockdown of Covid, I offered Mass each day, not just for my own spiritual well-being, but for that of my parishioners who were forbidden to attend any services due to secular law. I simply love offering Mass.
For us Catholics, the Mass is much more than a ceremony. It is the reality and power of Christ’s sacrifice made present to us under the signs of bread and wine, which become His Body and Blood. It is our way to tapping into the life of heaven for little bit of time here on earth. It is our participation, not only in the Last Supper, but in Calvary, the Resurrection, and Ascension, It is what helps us to do our best to try and become the saints we should be. That is why I will defend it.
Is everyone “welcome to the table” at the Mass? Yes. However, not everyone is able to receive the Sacrament. One has to be old enough, one has to be in communion with the Church, one has to believe that Communion is Christ, not just some symbol. One has to be “in the state of grace”, free from unrepented serious sin. That is why non-Catholics cannot receive (there are a very few exceptions to that), that is why little children in the Latin Rite wait until they’ve reached the age of reason to receive. That’s why persons divorced and remarried (outside the Church) cannot receive. That’s why I can’t receive until I’ve gotten a right good spiritual scrubbing in confession. I understand that this can be the source of pain for some, but I don’t make the rules. I do, however, have to enforce and explain them as a priest of God.
For the record, dear and gentle reader, I am not a right-wing conservative. I am not nor will be a member of the Republican Party here in the States, and I am most certainly not a supporter of D.J. Trump. Neither am I a Democrat and devotee of K. Harris & Co. If anything I would align myself with the American Solidarity Party, which promotes the Social Teaching of the Catholic Church. At heart, I am a monarchist, although I know well that I shall not live to see the day when the States would accept such a rule of government.
No, dear Reader, I am not homophobic or transphobic. Never once in my comments online did I infer that those responsible for the show would suffer the torments of the damned. Never once did I state that God would smite them in His wrath. Never once did I say that they and their ilk are unwelcome, or unwanted. Never did I say that they were unworthy of God’s love, or mine. Now yes, I know that some in the LGBT community see the Church as the enemy, and delight in giving her a black eye whenever they can. Part of that stems from some of them being treated terribly by others who claim to be religious, or who have claimed to act in the name of God or the Church. That kind of discrimination against homosexual persons is clearly condemned in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Sadly, there are those in the Church who enjoy targeting LGBT people. I am not one of them.
That being said, I also have to say that I am not in favour of the more and more extreme ideologies that are pushed by a small, but very vocal number in the LGBT community, especially the “gender ideologies”. Gah! Don’t get me started on that. I’ll be honest, I don’t conflate drag queens with actual trans-sexual persons. I don’t claim to understand the complexities of gender dysphoria. I know it causes pain in those who suffer from it. I can understand why adults who do suffer from it seek to “transition” through hormones and surgery. I see them all as my brothers and sisters, and would grant them the same dignities and rights that I myself enjoy in the civil realms of life.
I understand the entertainment role of the female impersonator. Barry Humphries was an absolute delight with his character Dame Edna. Dame Edna could be playfully abrasive in what she’d say, but she was never cruel to any group or individual in the comedic act. And that’s it - it was an act, not a lifestyle for Barry. Once offstage, Dame Edna was put away, and he was just Barry, a good natured, funny Aussie. I’d guess that the drag queens in that tableau put aside their crazy costumes, wigs and heels when they’re done performing as well.
To do what the tableau did, was to alienate many and perhaps cause some moderate people to see the entire LGBT community(ies) as their adversaries. As Jillian Michaels, a lesbian athlete and television celebrity posted on X: “Dear fellow gays… We demand tolerance and respect, then make a mockery of something sacred for over 2 billion Christians… This is NOT how we break down barriers, it’s how you build them.” I think she hit the nail on the head. Such extremist displays will only end up hurting the LGBT community in the long run.
I can honestly say that I do not hate the organizers of the ceremonies. I do not hate Thomas Jolly, the artistic director. I do not hate Barbara Butch, or any of the performers. I can understand that they may have serious disagreements with the teaching of the Church in matters sexual. I try to give them the benefit of the doubt when it comes to this spectacle, although it seems that the intention was to provoke a reaction from Christians. Was it their way of saying “Jesus loves us too”? I certainly wouldn’t say that it was meant to be a display of “queer theology”, because I don’t think either the director or performers are students or practitioners of the art of theology. Yes, He does love them, just as He loves you and me. But His love for us doesn’t mean that He’s fine with the wrongs we do. His love is there to not just comfort us, but call us to be who we are created to be - saints. His love calls for repentance of sin, and to live in union with Him and His Body, the Church.
The French, dear and gentle Reader, have a love-hate relationship with the Church. Some in that country love to hate it. A few love it. Others are conflicted, feeling culturally Catholic, while rarely if ever practicing the Faith. The French sense of humour is one that enjoys word-play, as well as poking fun at others. I think understanding this, helps to understand the nature of that tableau. I mean, the French do consider Jerry Lewis a comedic genius, after all, and that says volumes about their sense of humour. I can say this, being half French in ancestry. The entire ceremony was a display of the post-modern mindset all too common in France & other parts of the Western world. A mindset that seeks to deconstruct the old traditions and foundations and replace them with new ones.
So, all in all, was the tableau the worst thing that every happened? No, not by far. There are far worse tragedies each day, from natural disasters to human violence from which many of our brothers and sisters suffer, and these must be fought against and remedied.
Am I terribly troubled by it? No. Like “The DaVinci Code”, it will fade into the mists of time. I sincerely hope that the gaslighting surrounding it will cease, especially by my fellow Christians. I’m not calling for a siege mentality, or a martyrdom complex, but I think that we must be strong in our faith, living it proudly and joyfully as a witness to the world, and that means forgiving those who offend us.
One thing I do hope comes to pass in light of it all is that Catholics will be Catholic by conviction and not simply by culture. We live in a post-modern world where any kind of faith is not valued; where objective truth is dissected and dissolved into “my truth” and “your truth”, in other words, into fictions and fantasies which do not give true life, true joy, true hope. If anything, I hope that this situation makes us appreciate, love, celebrate, and pray the Mass better. I hope it drives us to a loving desire to receive the Lord in Holy Communion with all the fervour our hearts can muster. I hope it prompts us to bring that love to all peoples, even those who may mock us and tell us that our faith is nonsensical fairytales.
I warned you, it was a smorgasbord! I ask pardon if I’ve rambled and bored you, gentle Reader. Let’s hold each other in prayer, as we work for a better, gentler, kinder, more loving and merciful world.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to do my best Maurice Chevalier imitation, while chain-smoking, drinking wine and eating snails, as I play a game of “Whack-a-Mime” with a day old baguette.
God Bless!
Father P.
Comments
Post a Comment