The controversy over the opening festivities at the 2024 Summer Olympics, in particular “The Last Supper,” has caused me to reflect on what we are becoming as a society, and especially what some of those who call themselves Christians might have become. Others have presented a rebuttal to the notion that the tableau was “offensive” to Christians (or God). The scene was in fact an interpretation of an ancient Greek Feast of Dionysus, a celebration tied to the Olympic Games. It had nothing to do with Leonardo’s masterpiece, which itself was an anachronistic portrayal of a first century meal. I see no reason for those who know a little history to be offended. But I digress.
The problem: to take offense, one must overlook a lot of good things to focus on what one might believe to be “bad.” For example, Celine Dion performed an exquisite rendition of “Hymn to Love,” a triumph of the human spirit equal to any gold medal in the games. She fought her way back from a debilitating illness to inspire millions of people. Christians and non-Christians should acknowledge achievements like this. It seems to me Christians ought to be thanking God for moments like these rather than looking for reasons to be offended or to feel like victims. However, we are living in a time in which 98% of something could be good or at least innocuous and many people would still try to find the 2% they don’t like. If fault-finding were an Olympic sport, there would be plenty of competition.
Could it be that some Christians don’t really believe their God is powerful enough to fend off a little criticism or “mockery?” Could it be that some Christians don’t really believe their God is smart enough to know the difference between The Last Supper and a Bacchanalian banquet? Could it be that focusing on a minor fault to score political points has taken attention away from larger issues, such as feeding the hungry, caring for the sick, protecting children, and easing poverty? It disturbs me that so many Christians are trying to seize political power in the name of their God – as if their God is too weak to defend himself or is unable to act without the force of earthly law. If God requires political power and can’t “judge the nations” without his followers informing him who is good and who is bad, I’m not sure I want to believe in God.
In the USA, Christians have enjoyed unprecedented freedom to worship and to choose how to live out their faith. The notion that Christians are “victims” or are “persecuted” every time someone disagrees with them or questions their religion is, in a word, ludicrous. The challenge is to love one another. We have been cautioned not to judge one another. Maybe we should let God be the judge. It would take a great burden off our backs. The song, “And they’ll know we are Christians by our love,” comes to mind.
In Greek mythology, harpyia are beings that steal or snatch. We call them harpies. In keeping with the Olympic tradition, I have to ask, are we becoming a society of harpies? By focusing on the negative, are we snatching away the positive? Is it really a good idea to assume the attitude of a bird-woman to attack, denigrate, or condemn anything we don’t understand or agree with? Do we think so little of our God that we feel the need to become harpies in his name? Perhaps we need to stop being so quick to judge what others do and instead become agents of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control: Pursuing these will keep our inner harpies at bay.
MurrayWorks 