Egypt’s Al-Azhar condemns ‘insulting scenes’ of Jesus Christ at Paris Olympics

By Ibrahim Khazen

CAIRO (AA) – Egypt’s Al-Azhar, the highest seat of Sunni Muslim learning, condemned Sunday the “insulting scenes” of Jesus Christ during the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Paris.

During the ceremony on Friday, a live artistic tableau resembling Leonardo da Vinci's "The Last Supper" was presented, featuring a large table around which men dressed in women's clothing and exaggerated makeup were seated, alongside a transgender model.

These scenes “depict Jesus Christ in an offensive manner, disrespecting his honorable person and the high status of prophecy in a reckless barbaric way that does not respect the feelings of believers in religions and high human morals and values,” Al-Azhar said in a statement.

The Cairo-based institution warned against “the danger of exploiting global events to normalize insults to religion and promote destructive and disgraceful social diseases such as perversion and transgenderism.”

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) issued on Sunday a formal apology following the controversy caused by the parody.

"Clearly there was never intention to show disrespect to any religious group. On the contrary, we intended to show tolerance and community. If people have taken any offence then we are sorry,” spokesperson Anne Descamps told a press conference on Sunday.

The Paris Olympics will continue until August 11, featuring an unprecedented opening ceremony outside the stadium, specifically on the banks of the Seine River in northern France.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala