When the French Bishops Conference responded to the shock of the Last Supper parody during the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games they attempted to strike a hopeful note by reminding us what the Olympics are meant to be about.
“Sport is a wonderful human activity that deeply delights the hearts of athletes and spectators alike. Olympism is a movement at the service of this reality of human unity and fraternity. Now it’s time to take to the field, and may it bring truth, consolation and joy to all," the bishops declared at the end of their statement.
I imagine the vast majority of Catholics and non-Catholics similarly agreed with the sentiment and likewise just wanted to move on from the appearance of drag queens and LGBT individuals playing the parts of Christ and the 12 Apostles, which had <mark style="background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)" class="has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color"><a href="https://catholicherald.co.uk/mounting-catholic-pushback-against-olympic-games-opening-ceremony/?swcfpc=1">so marred the opening ceremony's celebrations</a></mark>, and to focus on and enjoy what the Olympics are famed for: offering a platform for humans to perform at seemingly superhuman levels while the rest of us look on in rapt wonder.
Unfortunately, already that wish has been undermined on day six of the Games by another seriously unpleasant moment, again underpinned by the same type of Wokery and gender ideology, which occurred in the female boxing competition.
In a match to qualify for the quarter-finals of the women's 66kg, the Italian female boxer Angela Carini lasted about 45 seconds in the ring against her Algerian opponent Imane Khelif – who identifies as female though genetically is male with XY chromosomes, unlike women who have XX chromosomes – before she had to retire from the fight, unable to withstand the force of Khelif’s punches. <br><br>Before those brief 45 seconds of the fight, during which her life’s ambition is shattered by ideological power and moral cowardice to call it out, Carini can be seen going through her pre-fight routine which, notably, wasn't quite in keeping with the French Olympic rules of "laïcité" that don't allow the display of religious symbols. <br><br>She makes the sign of the cross, then genuflects on one knee, before getting up, turning around and going to meet her opponent. Given that the 26-year-old is from Napoli in southern Italy, it wouldn’t seem a stretch that she is Catholic.
The footage of what follows next is pretty unsettling to say the least. You can sense vicariously the force of the final punch that lands on Carini's head and seals the deal: she later said she has “never been hit so hard in my life”.<br><br>It has been reported that Khelif has a condition called Swyer Syndrome, a condition whereby a person may have some partially developed female reproductive organs but will also have male physical characteristics – and advantages, certainly in sport – such as greater height, muscle mass and strength. Khelif had previously failed a gender eligibility test at the World Championships last year and wasn't allowed to compete in the women's competition.
Immediately after that last punch, Carini retires to her corner having raised an arm to signal she can't continue, then rests her arms on the ring as she talks to her coach. You don’t have to speak Italian to be able to understand what she is conveying, as you can see it in the eyes and facial expression: It’s impossible, there’s no chance, it’s over.
Her facial expression is a chilling reminder of how even with the best and strongest will in the world, sometimes the cards will be so stacked against you that you don't have a chance. It's a tellingly human and heartbreaking moment. <br><br>Given all the above it’s hard not to draw a direct line from that parody of the Last Supper and its “gross mockery” to the parody of a female boxing match that just occurred, and which made a gross mockery of many things that should be held dear, such as womanhood, the role of a man, how men and women should relate to each other, etc. <br><br><strong>RELATED: <mark style="background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)" class="has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color"><a href="https://catholicherald.co.uk/bishop-barron-slams-gross-mockery-of-last-supper-and-christian-faith-during-olympic-games-opening-ceremony/?swcfpc=1">Bishop Barron slams ‘gross mockery’ of Last Supper and Christian Faith during Olympic Games opening ceremony</a></mark></strong><br><br>Perhaps it's a clumsy comparison, but it's hard not to see the plucky but vastly outgunned Carini as standing for all the traditional social teachings of the Catholic Church – after the fight, still in tears during an interview, she describes how she'd had her heart set on winning in honour of her late father – as she goes up against the juggernaut of progressive secular modernism with its legions of corporate, media and governmental backers.
It’s not helped by the attendant images and photos that, as JK Rowling highlighted on <em>X</em>, seem to show a smirking victor while Carini has broken down in tears.
The analysis of the Last Supper debacle that Cardinal Raymond Burke has offered seems entirely apposite to this boxing fight which, again, illustrated a culture “beset with the darkness and sin which is ever more given place in the world” and which cooperates with “the father of all lies”. <br><br>Even if Khelif has Swyer Syndrome, those male characteristics mean the Algerian shouldn’t have been in an Olympic female boxing fight. There is also the fact this boxing fight occurred in the context of increasing numbers of men competing in female sports as trans women based on the “lie” of gender fluidity. <br><br>As such, what Carini experienced serves as perhaps an even starker example of what Burke described as “manifestations of the open rebellion against God and His plan for our salvation in the world in which we live” and which take the form of “attacks on human life and its cradle in the family created by the marriage of a man and a woman, and attacks on religion itself and its free exercise”.<br><br>In the context of such attacks, what is also so disturbing about this boxing fight, aside from the calamity and dreadful unfairness it represents for a brave young woman, is that it seems to demonstrate who and what is winning, and just how hard it is to go up against it. <br><br>“<em>Non e giusto</em>," Carini said through her tears while sobbing at the end of the fight. "It’s not right." <br><br><strong>RELATED: <a href="https://catholicherald.co.uk/theatre-of-satan-cardinal-burke-condemns-olympics-ceremony/?swcfpc=1"><mark style="background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)" class="has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">‘Theatre of Satan’: Cardinal Burke condemns Last Supper parody in Paris</mark></a></strong><br><br><em>Photo: Angela Carini of Team Italy reacts after having to retire from a Women's 66kg match against Imane Khelif of Team Algeria on day six of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at North Paris Arena in Paris, France, 1 August 2024. (Photo by Richard Pelham/Getty Images.)</em>
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