A scene from the opening ceremony of the Olympic games in Paris, based on the painting of the Last Supper by Leonardo Da Vinci, has sparked widespread condemnation including from the France bishops, after drag queens were used to depict Christ and the apostles.

The French Bishops criticised the “scenes of derision and mockery of Christianity, which we deeply deplore.”

In the US, Bishop Robert Barron, called it a “gross mockery of the Last Supper.”

He said the ‘blasphemous’ act was emblematic of a “deeply secularist postmodern society” that identifies Christianity as its enemy.

German Bishop Stefan Oster called the “queer Last Supper” scene “a low point and completely superfluous in the staging”.

While the ceremony’s director Thomas Jolly, claimed that the scene is an “interpretation of the Greek God Dionysus” a statement from ceremony’s producers, said that it was in fact inspired by Da Vinci’s famous painting.

“For the ‘Festivities’ segment, Thomas Jolly took inspiration from Leonardo da Vinci’s famous painting to create the setting,” the producers said in the statement. “… [Jolly] is not the first artist to make a reference to what is a world-famous work of art. From Andy Warhol to ‘The Simpsons,’ many have done it before him.”