Paris Olympics organisers apologise after backlash over 'Last Supper'

Organizers of the Paris Olympics apologized on Sunday to those offended by scenes at the opening ceremony that critics said mocked “The Last Supper.”

During Friday's ceremony, at the Pont de Billy over the Seine, the camera cut to French DJ and producer Barbara Bucci, who describes herself as a “love activist.” Bucci wore a blue dress and a silver headdress as the camera panned out to show drag queens flanking her on either side. A nearly naked man painted blue then appeared on a dinner plate surrounded by food. He then sang as people danced around him, and the scene cut to a runway with models walking across.

The scene has sparked backlash as it mocks Leonardo da Vinci's famous painting “The Last Supper,” which depicts Jesus Christ eating his final meal with his 12 apostles and then announcing that one of them will betray him.

Christian and Catholic groups around the world have since condemned the scene. The French Bishops' Conference, which represents the French Catholic bishops, said in a statement that the scene was “a mockery and an insult to Christianity” and that it was thinking of religious believers who were “hurt by the outrageousness and provocativeness of this particular scene.” Prominent Minnesota Bishop Robert Barron said in a statement that the video mocked “a very central moment of Christianity.”