In late response, Vatican ‘deplores the offense’ of Paris Olympics’ opening ceremony tableau

ROME (AP) — The Vatican says it “deplored the offense” caused to Christians by the Olympic Games opening ceremony. The Holy See issued a statement in French a week after a storm of criticism erupted over a scene that evoked Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper” and featured drag queens. It said it joined those who had been offended. In a statement, it said “there should be no ridiculous allusions to religion,” at such a global event. There was no immediate explanation for the delayed response. The ceremony’s artistic director Thomas Jolly has repeatedly denied he had been inspired by the “Last Supper.”