By Al Mayadeen English
The French episcopate condemns the parody of The Last Supper by drag queens participating in the Paris Olympics opening ceremony.
"We would like to thank the representatives of other religious denominations who expressed their solidarity with us," the Office of the French bishops said, according to a statement published by Le Figaro.
"This morning, our thoughts are with all Christians on all continents who have suffered from the outrageous and provocative scenes," the statement stressed.
"We hope they understand that the Olympic celebration goes far beyond the ideological preferences of a few artists," it added.
The French bishops were keen to point out that the ceremony had, however, offered "moments of beauty" and "joy."
Yesterday's ceremony saw drag queens parody Leonardo da Vinci's famous "The Last Supper" painting, angering Christians all over the world, as the original art piece depicts Jesus Christ's final moments with his disciples.
The opening ceremony "included scenes that mock and ridicule Christianity," which were "outrageous and provocative," the French episcopate said.
Meanwhile, the chief of the Paris 2024 Organizing Committee, Tony Estanguet, said that the organizers had sought for the ceremony to reflect French values and principles.
"We wanted the ceremony to showcase our values and principles. It contained clear messages — in particular, about women's society and love," Estanguet stated.
"We discussed all our messages with the IOC [International Olympic Committee]. This was a French ceremony for a French Olympics and we trusted the ceremony director," he explained.
"In France, we have freedom of expression and we adhere to it," the official claimed.
France under fire for banning hijabi athletes
France has been mired in controversy after banning French hijabi athletes from participating in the French Olympic team.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, said that the decision was a "blatant act of segregation."
This comes after French sprinter Sounkamba Sylla revealed that she was banned from attending the Olympic opening ceremony because of her hijab. Zakharova said it was clear since the beginning that the Games did not carry the Olympic spirit and were completely detached from the Olympics' objectives.
She drew comparisons to the discrimination faced by Russian and Belarusian athletes at the games, saying France's "logic of cancellation" was now impacting French athletes.
"One more time [the West] violates the spirit of sports outside of politics. Contrary to claims of some French officials that they are striving for diversity and freedom of expression, those who disagree are demonstrably and ostentatiously sanctioned," she added.
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