In 2015, there was an online viral phenomenon centered around the colour of a dress. Was it blue and black or was it white and gold? This unanticipated drama divided households, businesses and, seemingly, the entire planet. At its peak #TheDress appeared in 11,000 tweets per minute. However people perceived the colours of the dress, it was impossible to see it differently, despite the exasperation and insistence of those who saw it in the other colours. I mention this because of the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics. Did we witness a mockery of The Last Supper or was it, as claimed, the Feast of Dionysus? The world is, once again, divided and both sides are standing their ground on what they perceived. However, this time, we are not simply dealing with the colour of a dress. We are dealing with demonic deception on a global scale.
Dionysus (known as Bacchus to the Romans) was the mythological Greek god of wine and revelry. In cities and towns throughout the Greek world, Dionysus came to be associated with society’s misfits and castaways. Anyone who didn’t fit in or have a place in the social order was welcome to join his cult, particularly those who sought liberation from social constraints.
In ancient Roman culture, Dionysian festivals were known as bacchanalia and involved, among other things, drunkenness, sexual immorality and all kinds of degrading practices. In Livy’s historical account of the Bacchanalian Affair at Rome, he says: “Pleasures of wine and feast were added to the ritual, so that the minds of many might be enticed. When the wine had set fire to their souls, both the night and the mingling of men and women, old and young, had destroyed every sense of shame from the majority, first the corruptions of every kind began to happen, since each one was having a pleasure for himself, which suited his nature of prone lust.”
In attempting to distance himself from the backlash, Thomas Jolly (the artistic director behind the opening ceremony) claimed that The Last Supper was in fact not his inspiration. His statement read: “It’s not my inspiration and that should be pretty obvious. There’s Dionysus arriving on a table. Why is he there? First and foremost because he is the god of celebration in Greek mythology and the tableau is called ‘Festivity.’” He also went on to say: “He is also the god of wine, which is also one of the jewels of France, and the father of Séquana, the goddess of the river Seine. The idea was to depict a big pagan celebration, linked to the gods of Olympus, and thus the Olympics.”
Before the opening ceremony, there would have been many people throughout the world who had no idea who Dionysus was. In literature, authors have drawn inspiration from Dionysus to explore themes of liberation, rebellion, and the pursuit of a more profound understanding of existence. Not surprisingly, his archetype is easily identified in characters who challenge societal norms and embrace the uninhibited aspects of human nature. Therefore, the reason that many turn to him for inspiration is that his connection with ecstasy and ritual madness allows, in their mind, for the exploration of more taboo themes.
But, in returning to the Olympics, why put the focus on Dionysus and why include an unholy version of The Last Supper? In my view, it is meant to convey that the new sacred form of communion and worship will be based on a hedonistic lifestyle, with a counterfeit saviour as the centrepiece.
The presence of Dionysus at the opening ceremony wasn’t just a bit of fun as claimed by those who want Christians to “calm down”. It sent a deliberate message: the new world order demands a new god. To them, the future of the world lies with gods like Dionysus, not the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. To them, the future of the world involves hedonism and sexual immorality, not holiness and righteousness. To them, Christ is out and Dionysus is in. So, for those who claim it was innocent, think again.
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