Today we make Lent Madness hist0ry. While Old Testament figures are considered saints in some traditions, we have never before had one participate in the Saintly Smackdown. That ends today as Sarah the Matriarch faces Elizabeth Ann Seton in a pairing that spans many, many generations.

Yesterday, in the Battle of the Consonants, Samuel Isaac Joseph Schereschewsky outspelled Nikolaus von Zinzendorf 69% to 31% to advance to the Saintly Sixteen where he'll face Martin Luther.

If you missed yesterday's Limerick Edition of Monday Madness, you can still redeem your entire week by watching it here. Tim and Scott share some limericks (both on air and in print) and, despite some amazing rhymes throughout yesterday's comment section, have officially decided NOT to turn Lent Madness into one giant penitential poetry slam.

(more…)

In today's post introducing the long-anticipated Battle of the Consonants, we put out a call for limericks. I mean, don't the names Samuel Isaac Joseph Schereschewsky and Nikolaus von Zinzendorf just scream "poetry?" We were pleased to see that many heeded the call and wanted to share a few of them with you. Plus, this is a great way to honor St. Patrick whose feast day we ignored on Friday.

Of course, today is Monday, and that means it's time for everyone's beginning of the week ritual, Monday Madness. Tim has chosen two limericks to read aloud to you, the Lent Madness Global Viewing Public. But that's not the only big thing in this week's episode of Monday Madness. Scott has some big ideas to market Lent Madness during this bracket-tide season. And Tim and Scott talk about the final three battles in the Round of the 32, including a Lent Madness first!

So watch the full episode, including (a mercifully brief) Saintly Poetry Slam. Here are some selections from limericks submitted by viewers, and you can read the whole lot of them in the comments section for today's contest.

(more…)

Thirty-four consonants between them! That's what we're talking about in the long-anticipated Battle of the Consonants between Samuel Isaac Joseph Schereschewsky and Nikolaus von Zinzendorf. You have 24-hours (or 10 fewer hours than consonants) to decide this tongue twister of a matchup.

With only three battles left in the Round of 32, we will be kicking off the Saintly Sixteen on Thursday. The field is narrowing, folks! In case you missed it, on Friday Scholastica schooled Macrina the Younger 64% to 37%. But that's old news. So let's get on with it, shall we?

But first, check out this article about Lent Madness written by Emily Miller of Religion News Service that made its way into various secular newspapers over the weekend.

Oh, and we challenge you to write a limerick based on today's matchup. Just because. Leave your best attempt in the comment section.

(more…)

OF COURSE we finish up a full week of saintly action by ignoring the cultural phenomenon of St. Patrick's Day. No green beer for us -- we're all purple all the time anyway. No, today in Lent Madness it's Scholastica vs. Macrina the Younger with nary a shamrock in sight! This contest is chock-full of sibling rivalry as Scholastica was St. Benedict of Nursia's twin sister while Macrina had a plethora of saintly siblings. Read on for details...

Yesterday Amelia Bloomer yanked down Phillipp Melanchthon by a wide margin of 74% to 26% to advance to the Saintly Sixteen.

As you prepare for a full 48 hours of saintly voting deprivation, we wanted to point out that you don't have to wait until Monday morning to discover the results of this matchup. After the polls close in 24 hours, simply click on this post and scroll down to see the results. You can also click on the Bracket tab for all the current results.

We'll see you bright and early on Monday for the Battle of the Consonants aka Name-a-Geddon as Samuel Isaac Joseph Schereschewsky faces Nikolaus von Zinzendorf. Now go vote!

(more…)

Today in Lent Madness it's a 19th century reformer taking on a 16th century Reformer (see what we did there?). It's an intriguing matchup between  an educator on the forefront of the Women's Rights movement and a theologian on the forefront of the Protestant Reformation. Who will advance to the Saintly Sixteen? That, dear friends, is up to you!

Yesterday, in what may well be considered the biggest upset thus far, Franz Jägerstätter narrowly took down Joan of Arc 52% to 48%. Ladies and gentlemen, we have an official Cinderella of the 2017 bracket -- and rather than a glass slipper he's wearing double umlauts.

(more…)

Another day, another tough matchup. Today it's Franz Jägerstätter (double umlaut!) vs Joan of Arc. One, a little-known (until today)  conscientious objector and opponent of the Nazis; the other, a well-known if often misunderstood saint from France.

Yesterday, Martin Luther overwhelmed the upstart David Oakerhater, despite a valiant showing, 58% to 42% to advance to the Saintly Sixteen.

The Supreme Executive Committee also released its annual (unless we forget) saintly analysis of the NCAA bracket. Yes, some people apparently pay attention to another bracket-based tournament with "Madness" in the name that takes place this time of year.

(more…)

Here at Lent Madness we were shocked to learn that there is some other bracket competition that takes place this time of year. Apparently it involves an orange orb referred to as a "basketball." Not ready to leave brackets to the whims of others, we have done a saintly analysis of this other March endeavor.

What follows is the Official Lent Madness Bracket Analysis For Tournaments Taking Place During March That Do Not Involve Saints.

When you examine the NCAA basketball tournament from a saintly perspective, three categories emerge: The Obvious, The Perhaps, and The Give Me A Break.

(more…)

"It's not fair!" We sometimes hear such complaints about Lent Madness. And..of course it's not fair. Which is why we call this little devotion Lent MADNESS and not Lent FAIRNESS. Thus, we end up with matchups such as today's that pit a well-known Reformer of the Middle Ages against a lesser known late 19th, early 20th century Native-American convert to Christianity. So while all may be fair in love and war, all is decidedly not fair in Lent Madness.

Yesterday, to further illustrate this point, was the Battle of the Augustines aka Augustine Anarchy. Going into this matchup one thing was crystal clear: Augustine would emerge victorious. In this case Augustine of Canterbury bested Augustine of Hippo 57% to 43% to advance to the Saintly Sixteen.

And if you missed yesterday's epic edition of Monday Madness, you can watch it here. Tim and Scott discuss the week ahead and answer some very pertinent viewer mail.

(more…)

Today's episode of Monday Madness features the Supreme Executive Committee answering viewer mail, questions asked by you, the Lent Madness global viewing public. Tim and Scott also give some advice on what to do when your saint isn't winning (without getting yourself banished into the outer darkness). And, of course, Tim shows off his Dietrich Bonhoeffer 2016 Golden Halo winning mug. Would it be a Monday Madness without product placement?

(more…)

Congratulations! You have officially survived the first full weekend without Lent Madness voting -- an activity that continues throughout the weekdays of Lent. Your reward? The long-anticipated Battle of the Augustines! Will it be Hippo or Canterbury? The choice, dear friends, is yours.

For those who didn't receive news of Friday's results (and you can always go back to the original post or check the Bracket tab), Raymond Nonnatus   ripped apart John of Nepomuk 83% to 17%.

We also have good news to report on ReviewGate, the controversy that recently touched the inner sanctum of Lent Madness. Last Friday we shared the news that someone had (shockingly!) given Lent Madness a 2-out-of-5 rating on our Facebook page. In fact, over the years we had garnered a 4.8 star rating. That might seem high but when you consider yourselves "Supreme" that's just not good enough. Thanks to the hundreds of Lent Madness fans who shared our outrage and posted their own reviews, we are up to a full 5-out-of-5 star rating with nearly 1,000 reviews. In other words, all is now right with the Lenten world.

(more…)