World Stuff [Current events from a biblical worldview.]
The 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris began with (surprise!) quite a bit of deference to the hedonism associated with post-Christian societies. The most controversial was what appeared to be a mockery of Christ’s last supper with His disciples, replaced by drag queens, immortalized in Da Vinci’s painting of the same name. The response was swift, as Christians around the world condemned the act.
Olympic organizers apologized, and Philippe Katerine, the “artist” behind the representation, assured everyone it was not a mockery of the Last Supper but rather a pagan Bacchanal[1]—specifically a feast honoring the Greek god Dionysius. Katerine himself joined the scene, nearly naked and painted in blue, to represent a pagan god.
Whether it was a mockery of Christianity or celebration of paganism, it’s a distinction without a difference.
While Katerine’s staged scene was reminiscent of depictions of pagan feasts (Brueghel’s Marriage of Bacchus and Ariadne comes to mind), the initial pose was clearly akin to Da Vinci’s famed painting of the Last Supper. It’s incredulous to believe Katerine and his performers were ignorant of this similarity, but again, does it really matter? If the point was not to mock Christianity, it certainly was to honor paganism and subsequently, whether understood or not, to mock God.
Of greater importance is understanding what this represents on the trajectory of humanity.
First, let’s look at paganism. Etymologically the term stems from the Latin paganus, which we would define as “a country bumpkin.” Later it was used to describe those who rejected the Jewish or Christian faith, and ultimately a “person of heathenish character or habits.” Paganism has been around for thousands of years, and was very prominent in Greco-Roman culture
The original language of the Bible doesn’t use the exact term pagan,[2] but instead phrases such as “abominable practices” (Deuteronomy 18:9) or “idolatry” (Exodus 20:3-5). These behaviors include (but are not limited to):
- Child Sacrifice
- Divination
- Omen Interpretation
- Fortune Telling
- Sorcery/Charmers
- Mediums/Seances
- Necromancers
- Idol Fashioning and Worship
- Works of the Flesh (“…sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these…” Galatians 5:19-20)
- Polytheism
- Witchcraft
In essence, biblical paganism describes beliefs and behaviors God finds detestable, and He instructs His people to distinguish themselves from such wickedness:
“Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, ‘I will make My dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. Therefore, go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to Me, says the Lord Almighty’” (2 Corinthians 6:14-18).[3]
And in this, even to expose paganism:
“Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them” (Ephesians 5:11).
From the Greek elegchó, “expose” means to, “convict, refute, confute, generally with a suggestion of shaming the person or action.” Hardly a passive response, yet with the hope not only of differentiating biblical Christianity from the world, but of bringing light in midst of darkness
Which leads us to the final “setting apart” of the Church.
We are told in Scripture that just before Jesus returns to gather His Church and judge the world, society will reach a point of no return. In his second letter to Timothy, the apostle Paul writes:
“You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God. They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that!” (2 Timothy 3:1-5)
The apostle John writes in Revelation:
“In those days people will seek death but will not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them!” (Revelation 9:6)
Although the world has been on this path for some time, in these last days any remaining barriers to immoral, unethical, and unsavory behavior will disappear. “Bad” will become “good,” “righteous” will become “unrighteous.” The world at large will have completely abandoned God, morality will be subjectively defined and enforced, and those who remain dedicated to Christ will be mocked, persecuted, and killed for their beliefs.
Then comes the end of all things.
It’s not easy to determine the exact order of events, but the Bible tells us that the final chapter in our history begins with two “Witnesses” of God who will, for 3½ years and by the authority of four angels in Heaven, call down plagues upon the earth, warning people of God’s pending judgment (Revelation 11:3-6). Then, a world leader will arise to destroy the two Witnesses and bring “peace” to the world (Revelation 11:7). Known as the Antichrist, the world leader will rule for 3½ years—intent on destroying any remaining followers of Christ and placing himself as “God” in the temple in Jerusalem. This period is known as the Tribulation.
God will resurrect the two Witnesses who then ascend to Heaven, and Christ will return to earth to defeat the Antichrist (2 Thessalonians 2:8; Revelation 19:19-21), judge the nations (2 Timothy 4:1), and establish His millennial kingdom (Revelation 20:4-6).
Whether biblical Christians will be “raptured” (i.e., meet Jesus “in the air” as He returns to earth for the second time—1 Thessalonians 4:17) before, during, or after the seven years of tribulation is a topic of theological debate with no conclusive answer. What is certain is that Christ and His Church will prevail for all eternity, and the world so corrupted by sin will cease to exist, replaced by a new Heaven and Earth (Revelation 21:1-8).
So, how does Philippe Katerine and his band of merry drag queens factor into all this?
In the eternal scheme of things, it’s a blip on the timeline of history. Yet it reflects an increasing determination on the part of the secular world to defy, mock, and reject the God of the Bible—to engage in and promote paganism. It unmasks the level to which debauchery is now accepted and affirms our rapid trajectory toward the end of things as we know them.
Ridiculous mythology? To biblical Christians it’s an abiding reality and hope!
[1] From Bacchus, the Roman god of wine and sensuality.
[2] Some modern English translations use the term “pagan” for “sacrifices to demons” (1 Corinthians 10:20) and “Gentiles” (Matthew 5:46-47)
[3] Quoting from OT passages such as Leviticus 26:12; Jeremiah 32:38; Ezekiel 37:27, et al.
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