On the 30th July 2024, the UN celebrates International Friendship day. It is borne out of the idea that friendship between peoples, countries, cultures and individuals can inspire peace efforts and build bridges between communities. As a global event, the ongoing Olympics is an excellent opportunity to promote friendship and build bridges between communities.
The Olympics, an international sporting event that takes place every 4 years, brings top athletes from around the world to Paris. It celebrates the role sports play in building a better world with its three key values of excellence, respect and friendship.
Unfortunately, the opening ceremony of the Olympics in Paris seems to have achieved the opposite effect. That one scene of drag queens that seemingly mocked the Last Supper, a hallmark event of the Christian faith, led to widescale uproar. As a result, the Paris 2024 spokesperson Anne Descamps has apologized for offending Christians. She has maintained that it was not the intention of the organizing committee to hurt any religious group, rather their goal was to showcase community and inclusivity. The Creative director of the Opening Ceremony, Thomas Jolly, echoed that mocking Christians was indeed not his intention. In an interview, he mentioned his desire was to celebrate the freedom of creation and love that is found in Paris, France. It is clear that any celebration of creativity and love ought to honor and uphold the values of excellence, respect and friendship if it is to uphold the spirit of the Olympics.
If the value of friendship was pursued, at best it was pursued with a particular target group to the exclusion of others. Disrespect, even if unintended, has been felt. As a historical Catholic country with rich Christian motifs displayed around the city, it is sad to note the non-recognition of Parisians of one of the most popular images of the Christian faith. Relying on one’s cultural traditions are insufficient to truly appreciate the Christian faith.
The Last Supper, the Christian image that is under scrutiny, provides some lessons on friendship. It is the last meal that Jesus had with his disciples before his crucifixion. It was a sombre, poignant and intimate moment for a small group of closely knit friends who were about to experience a very traumatic turn of events. It is a deep moment of covenant friendship. It is both a human and divine occasion in which the brokenness of the one leads to the healing of the other. Taking place around the Passover, it reminds us of Jesus’ sacrifice as the lamb of God for all who believe in him. His death is what enables us to live. As described in the Bible, Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends (Jn 15:13). The Last Supper is about deep and sacrificial commitment and love to friends and foes alike.
Additionally, it is during the Last Supper that Jesus talked about his new commandment: to love one another (Jn 13:34). From Jesus’ perspective, it is through love that everyone will know that we are Jesus’ disciples. We are called to love because he first loved us. Because of his love of humankind, Jesus paid the ultimate dues for us all so that we will be reconciled with him.
As Christians, while we applaud efforts like the Olympics to build friendships and connection, we recognize the limitations of such events to bring about ultimate peace and harmony. Only through the love of Christ will we be willing to lay down our self-interest for the other. The Last Supper is that occasion through which we take time to reflect on the cost of true reconciliation and friendship. We are grateful for the exhortation to break bread and drink wine so that we can regularly be reminded of the source of love, God himself.
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