Introduction
Behind the glitz and glamour of the 33rd Olympic Games, a carefully and intricately crafted narrative seemed to lie. The opening and closing ceremonies were more than spectacles; they were strategic platforms for conveying powerful messages. Today, we’re peeling back the layers to uncover the hidden meanings behind the closing ceremony.
At first, the 2024 Paris Olympics Closing Ceremony appeared to be much less anti-Christian than the opening ceremony, but in reality, it was just as bad or even worse. It used imagery and scenes that have been interpreted as satanic by some people, but someone unfamiliar with the representations would not grasp what was being portrayed. Deceptive is probably a more appropriate word than subtle to describe its depictions. Whereas one could easily see the blasphemy of the portrayals used in the opening ceremony, the closing ceremony required greater discernment and analysis.
With millions of people viewing the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympic games, in addition to those attending, that stage is used to communicate important messages. It is no wonder that the 2024 games were used to get those unchristian messages out. According to variety.com, the website for the American weekly entertainment trade magazine Variety, the closing ceremony show had over 70,000 spectators, 8,200 athletes from over 200 delegations, and 270 artists. They stated that in addition, there were thousands of police forces, including 2,000 agents from overseas, present. Also, according to data from Nielsen and Adobe Analytics the closing ceremony brought in 20.8 million viewers across NBC, Peacock, and other NBC Universal platforms, Record usage of the Olympic web and app, reaching approximately 300 million people during Paris 2024, the highest for any Olympic Games edition.
Comments on the Closing Ceremony Show
The closing ceremony was orchestrated by artistic director, Thomas Jolly, and executive director Thierry Reboul. Jolly was also responsible for the opening ceremony which featured the blasphemous portrayal of the “Last Supper”.
The website variety.com stated, “Jolly — whose opening ceremony show triggered praises from many but also criticism from conservatives due to a scene that seemed to mock ‘The Last Supper’ — created an operatic and dystopian show highlighting the origins and values of the Olympics. Like the opening ceremony that celebrated love and inclusion, the closing bash had a similarly progressive message, with Reboul saying it would use science-fiction to raise ‘awareness about the fact that our world is fragile, and we need to preserve our values.’”
The artistic director stated that the show was meant to take spectators on a journey through time, exploring the foundations of humanity in a tribute to the creation of the Games and their revival by Pierre de Coubertin, the father of the modern Olympic Games, in the late 19th century. However, Russia’s foreign ministry spokeswoman (since 2015), Maria Zakharova, has been quoted by Newsweek as saying, “that the only thing worse than the opening of the Olympic Games in Paris could be their closing,” They also report her as saying that there were religious overtones, that, “there was the obvious satanism”, and that “France did not miss this chance”. They said the comments were made through her Telegram channel.
Description of the Show
The show featured the main character as a figure dressed in a golden armor-like suit with a spiked headdress, who is being referred to as the Golden Voyager. This is said to be tied to the Voyager Golden Records, two identical phonograph records that NASA launched aboard the 1977 Voyager space crafts. The figure descended into the stadium from the roof and came upon a headless figure, which looked like the depiction of an angel without its head, and an astronaut. The headless angel depiction is said to be Nike, the Greek goddess of victory who was respected and revered in ancient Greece.
After he descended the “Hymn to Apollo,” was played. The lyrics of which are very long and are anything but Christian. A prayer to a pagan god was also done. The golden figure was then raised upwards in a ring-like structure (said to represent the 5 Olympic rings) by some gray beings with large eyes. The beings in gray were said to be worshipping the Golden Voyager. Some viewers believed they represented aliens, while others thought they represented people subjugated by Satan. The golden figure exited the ring and was raised and passed along by the gray-clad figures whose heads were bowed and appeared to be worshipping him. He was finally held above them like a victor, as he stared at the headless statue of the winged being, Nike.
The next scene shows a glowing orange and black grand piano rising from the ground and suspended mid-air. A piano player dressed in black feathers rose with it. This was said by some to be a depiction of the mythical phoenix, a bird said to be immortal and that regenerates cyclically or is otherwise born again. The French band Phoenix performed during the ceremony, which some people said was not coincidental. Some interpreted the scene to be a depiction of Satan rising from the ashes like a phoenix, to control mankind.
Athletes Praised and Worshipped God
Just like Daniel and the three Hebrew boys in Babylon, there were Christian athletes there who held to their faith. In Daniel 3 the Hebrews were told to worship the gods or golden image in Babylon, but they refused to do so even when threatened. They were thrown into a fiery furnace which was heated times seven times hotter than usual, but they still refused to bow to the image and pagan gods. The bible said not a hair on their heads was singed. Their clothes did not burn, and they did not smell of smoke.
The glory of the true and living God, the Lord Jesus Christ, could not be stopped. With all that was happening at the Paris Olympics, there were athletes there giving glory to God. I have never seen so many athletes praising God in speeches and singing during press conferences and interviews. According to Christianity Today, “Yemisi Ogunleye may have won a gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, but she put Jesus front and center on the podium. The Nigerian-born, German shot putter won gold on Friday, August 9, 2024. It was Germany’s first gold in the event in 28 years.” Athletes from several countries worshipped together in the Olympic village, the team from Fiji held praise and worship sessions and individual athletes got the message out when they were interviewed. German gymnast, Rebecca Andrade, also sang a Christian song and spoke about her Christian upbringing during her interview after taking gold in the floor exercise. Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Julien Alfred, Jereem Richards, and many other athletes were not shy in speaking about their faith in God. Even though some of what was said may have been edited out before publication, the messages still got out. Matthew 5:14 KJV reads, “Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven”.
What Does this Mean for Christians?
Many persons have decried both the opening and closing ceremonies through various social media platforms. This includes non-Christians who have seen certain symbolisms in the ceremonies which they consider to be evil. Whether they believed that the closing ceremony was about satanic rituals and the glorification of Satan, the worshipping of pagan gods, or aliens, people were concerned about these blatant displays at the Games. The London 2012 Olympics and others had symbolisms also. I do not recall the 2016 Rio Olympics or the Tokyo Olympics having this issue. It began with the first Olympics in Greece and will probably continue until Jesus Christ comes.
The opening ceremony has been explained in different ways by the people involved and what is clear is that what occurred is what they intended. Even with censorship and social media posts being removed the information is still circulating. The devil is a deceiver and will use any means to get people to worship him. He will disguise himself and try to appear as an angel of light, so we need to be discerning.
It is not going to get better we are moving towards the days when religious freedom will be a thing of the past. It is gradually being ramped up in some traditionally Christian countries. Revelation 12 describes what will happen in the last days. Verse 9 states, “The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.” It tells us in verse 11 what happened to the believers, “They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.”
The spirit of Antichrist is in the world and eventually the Antichrist himself will be revealed. If we believe the Bible, then we know that the Antichrist will come. He has not yet been revealed but the spirit of Antichrist is already here. 1 John 4:2-3 tells us how to recognize it, “This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.” We should not be disturbed about what is happening, however, we need to be aware.
Conclusion
For non-Christians, we pray that you will commit your lives to Jesus Christ and make Him the Lord of your life. He has already paid the price for you and defeated death, sin, and the grave. The Devil knows he has already been defeated but is seeking company. He wants to deceive as many people as he can. Accept Jesus’ offer today, get baptized in His name, start to talk to Him in prayer, read your Bible, and get to know Him.
Those of us who are Christians need to read the Word daily and draw closer to Jesus. We need to spread the good news of salvation to others. Do not assume that a person does not want to hear. At least try. A seed may be sown in their heart you never know. If the Paris 2024 Olympics Opening and Closing ceremonies showed you nothing else, as far as Christendom is concerned, I hope we all see that there is work to be done. Just look at some of the reactions on social media and they will confirm this. Remember that we are all called to spread the Word and Matthew 24:14 states, “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come”. This verse is a prophecy from Jesus that his church will preach the gospel of the kingdom to all nations before the end of the age.