by Christine Sine
Like many of us I watched the opening Olympic ceremony a couple of days ago. I was inspired by the creativity and imagination that went into this incredible display of French culture and history. I loved the way the organizers reinterpreted what an opening ceremony could look like, stretching the bounds of what had previously been considered possible. Celine Dion’s finale song and the lighting of the Olympic flame with the incorporation of the iconic Eiffel Tower was fantastic.
What I was not prepared for was the vitriolic response of many Christians who were offended by what they interpreted as a blasphemous representation of the Last Supper, contrasting it with Da Vinci’s Last Supper which for some reason is seen as the iconic depiction of this event. For those of us who believe in diversity, equality and inclusion this image if painted today might seem equally offensive. Wow! why not such outrage at the increasing poverty and violence around the world? Or for our contributions to the climate crisis? Why not shout out against the racism, sexism and abuse of those at the margins we see all around us?
I am not going to debate here whether this image was really a blasphemous representation of the last supper or not. The Olympic community says no and tells us very convincingly where the idea came from. What horrifies me is how quickly Christians respond to seeming offense with hate rather than love, unwilling to listen to other points of view or seek to bridge the divide between what they believe and what they see represented. What a fantastic opportunity this was for all of us to reach out in love and a sense of welcome to these drag queens who are often rejected and abused by society. What an opportunity for us to show love and not hate. And we missed it.
One aspect of the arguments that have raged after the event that I really appreciated were the alternative images of the Last Supper that are often depicted in popular culture. This blog post identifies 101 Pop Culture Last Suppers . The Simpson’s had a go at it; the Expendables; Sesame Street, Star Wars and Lost. It is fascinating to me how often people want to see themselves as sitting down at a banquet feast with Jesus. Maybe there is something for us to grab hold of here. How about banquet feast around the world for those who are at the margins of our society?
I love the painting by Polish artist Bohdan Piasecki above which depicts Jesus at the Last Supper surrounded by the twelve disciples, as well as women and children. Women and children have always had a place at the table with Jesus as have the abused, the abandoned and the rejected. Whether they would have been present at this last supper has often been debated by the church, but I cannot imagine that Jesus would have excluded them. We forget that many of Jesus disciples were not very acceptable in his society – Galilean fishermen, tax collectors, and healed lepers all sat at table with Jesus. Women of ill repute followed him. Children were often all around him.
This week through the posts of my friends I identified some other beautiful images that I am sure will be offensive to some because they include people often seen as outside Jesus’ circle of acceptance. Like this one that Ellen Haroutunian posted where all those at the table have Down’s syndrome. The amazing thing about Jesus and our loving Creator is that they accept everyone. The despised, the abandoned and the rejected are at the centre of the table. I bet Jesus would have embraced those drag queens if he was with us today. He would probably have sat down at that table with them and enjoyed the feast. And he would have brought a few other “unacceptable ones” with him as this image shows.
What images of Jesus sitting down at table appeal to you? Why? How could you expand your boundaries to include those who are excluded by our society?