Angry Christians march after ‘offensive’ Olympics opening ceremony?

ByFactcheck India

July 31, 2024 #Christians march, #disinformation, #Fact Check, #Fact Check India, #Factcheck_in, #Fake news, #false information, #India, #misinformation, #Olympics, #Olympics opening ceremony, #Paris Olympics,#TruthXIndia

Angry Christians march after 'offensive' Olympics opening ceremony

No, these clips are old and are unrelated to the backlash against the provocative portrayal of The Last Supper.

The inaugural ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics saw backlash after a controversial portrayal of Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper”, resulting in authorities removing the event video from all digital platforms. Several US and international lawmakers condemned the act in question and accused the organiser’s. Now, several videos making rounds on social media purport to show angry Christians taking to the streets to protest this.

One such video of a large gathering near the Eifel Tower was shared with the claim: “After the shocking opening of the Olympic Games, which many say showed the world is quickly going to hell, a worship service outside the main Auditorium, they sing; Jesus Loves You – Every knee will bow down “just broke out in Paris to salvage what is left.

Another video of a large crowd holding candles and singing was shared with similar claims. This clip was from July 28. Others stated that the video showed “Thousands of Christians in France gathered together in a breathtaking display of faith and unity.”

THE FIRST VIDEO

A reverse image search traced this clip to an Instagram post by social media user from May 25. The Olympic opening ceremony took place in Paris on July 26, over a month after the video was shared. The caption of the Instagram post read, “Right now in Paris, at the Eiffel Tower bringing Jesus to this city. Worshipping Him and preaching Jesus to the crowd.”

Further keyword searches led us to a May 29 CBN News report featuring this video. The report stated that this event was called the “March For Jesus France” and the first such event took place in Paris in 1991. The report added that in 2024, the event broke its record in Paris with more than 25,000 participants.

THE SECOND VIDEO

Reverse searching keyframes from the second video took us to this clip posted on X by an account called Sanctuary of Our Lady Lourdes on August 15, 2022, making it evident to be unrelated to the recent backlash. The French caption of this post roughly translates to, “Beautiful and happy Feast of the Assumption to all. In the union of prayer with all the Catholics of the world. May the Virgin Mary shine in your hearts.” A search with keywords revealed that the Feast of the Assumption is a spiritual celebration among Catholics, observed on August 15 every year.

Belle et heureuse fête de l’Assomption à tous.
En union de prière avec tous les catholiques du monde. Que la Vierge Marie resplendisse dans vos cœurs 🙏 pic.twitter.com/vqIynCtCdh
— Sanctuaire Notre-Dame de Lourdes (@lourdes_france) August 14, 2022

Therefore, it is more than clear that both videos are old and unrelated to the outrage against the Paris Olympics opening ceremony.

For All Social Media Buffs:

Disinformation is false information that someone or a group spreads online while knowing it’s false. Generally, they do this for a specific intention, usually for the purpose of influencing others to believe their point of view.

Examples of disinformation include:

Outdated Information: Sharing facts that were once true but have since changed.

Rumors: Spreading unverified stories or claims.

Mistaken Identity: Incorrectly attributing an event or statement to the wrong person.