Wasson: Blasphemy opens the Olympics

The opening of the Summer Olympics in France was a drag show — as usual, in front of children. That was too weird for me, so I decided not to watch. I later found out that the performers went out of their way to mock Christianity. After seven years of planning, they were ready to gaslight offended viewers. You did not see what you saw; it was something else, and you misunderstood.

This was offensive towards Christianity. People worldwide recognized the similarities to Leonardo DaVinci’s Last Supper. Judging from the response across free speech platforms, Christians, non-Christians, Jews, Muslims, etc., found this to be in poor taste.

It did not take long for a few Christians to criticize the offended Christians for being offended. They explained that the gospel is for everyone and that we should turn the other cheek. However, the difference in this situation is that the performance was not just a slap in the face of Christians; it was blasphemy against the Holy God.

My question to Christians is, “If blasphemy does not offend you, what does?” Someone may insult me, and that is fine; I do not have to react. However, if someone attacks my family, they can expect a fight. Not all Christians are pacifists. Very few are cowards.

It has been rightly noted that those who target Christianity for mockery have no fear of retaliation. They are far less courageous to mock religions that will strike back with terrorism.

A definition of blasphemy is “an act or expression that slanders or disrespects God or sacred things, whether verbally or through some profane action.” Yes, even though not entirely historically accurate, a medieval painting can be considered sacred because of what it represents.

The Last Supper is sacred to Christians. 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 says, “For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took bread and when he had given thanks, broke it, and said, 'This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.' In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, and said, 'This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.' For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”

You probably heard that the organizers apologized. They explained that their purpose was inclusion, but we know by now that this excludes orthodox Christianity. The essence of the apology was, “We are sorry if you were offended,” which is not an apology. If you disagree, try using that terminology the next time you offend your spouse.

They do not care that 2.4 billion people’s faith was mocked, but they should care that God was mocked. The Bible says in Galatians 6:7, “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for what one sows, that will he also reap.” Sometimes, Christians mistakenly refer to Karma, but the idea is similar. Like my grandmother used to say, “You reap what you sow.”

We can be offended that our God has been blasphemed without hating the blasphemers and wishing them eternal condemnation. However, preaching the gospel requires us to tell sinners that they must admit that they are sinners, repent of their sins, and confess faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior.

Someone humorously defined the role of a pastor as a “mild-mannered man standing before mild-mannered people and exhorting them to be more mild-mannered.” There will always be people who discourage Christians from engaging with the culture. These same people would have corrected Jesus after he drove the money changers from the temple.

The images we saw at the opening of the Olympics evoke the biblical description of Sodom and Gomorrah. Some have described the imagery as satanic, while others thought it was apocalyptic. Maybe this debacle will lead people to read the Bible to understand the four horsemen of the apocalypse, the meaning of the Last Supper, and/or God’s design for the family.

Let us pray that God will awaken his church and send revival.

Shawn Wasson, D.Min., is the pastor of Bethany Baptist Church.