What a week! With one more battle to go, we will have set the stage for the Faithful Four as the march to the Golden Halo continues. Today, Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Columba vie for the final spot as they seek to join Constance, Sojourner Truth, and Julian of Norwich.
To make it to this point, Bonhoeffer defeated Athanasius and Barnabas while Columba got past Kateri Tekakwitha and Meister Eckhart.
Yesterday Julian of Norwich skated past Albert Schweitzer 68% to 32. And in 24 hours, we bid adieu to saintly kitsch. We only encountered a few Kitsch Kranks this year and for that, we're grateful.
The Faithful Four will take place on Monday and Tuesday with the vote for the Golden Halo happening on Spy Wednesday. Onward, Lenten Soldiers!
Columba
Of course, the most famous of all St. Columba artifacts would have to be the abbey at Iona, which still exists today. Visitors from all over the world journey to the abbey for retreats and spiritual renewal. The community at Iona continues to transform the Christian world to this day.
However, one could hardly call such a worthy endeavor mere kitsch, and kitsch is what this round is all about. Therefore, let us now, with one accord, turn our attention towards the less serious items of St. Columba’s lore.
First off, if you are in the mood to pretend you actually are St. Columba, wandering hither and yon through the Scottish countryside, you are in luck. There is a CD which purports to contain the sounds of ancient Celtic Christianity, and also features the most disturbing cover image ever! I direct you to “In Praise of St. Columba: The Sound World of Celtic Christianity.” GAZE UPON THAT MASK AND DESPAIR.
Further, to really establish your identity as the bookish saint, there is this lovely mug, with which you can subtly taunt those who would attempt to countermand your decisions regarding poets or copyright dis
putes. Wave your hot beverage of choice; you got this.
Now, because copying manuscripts by hand is no longer required in this day of technology, you will surely busy yourself playing that most intelligent of card games: Magic: the Gathering. So you are going to need this Iona card. Because this exists. That’s right--for the enormous overlapping population of those devoted to Celtic monasticism and those devoted to role-playing card games.
But maybe this isn’t enough for you. Maybe, in your slavish kitschish devotion to the Celtic saint, you desire more challenges. Then, might I suggest you undertake as well Columba’s greatest feat? You’re going to need to face the Loch Ness monster.
But not all at once; no. You will need to work in stages. First, order one of these Loch Ness monster soup ladles for your kitchen.
Practice your stirring defenses of our Lord Jesus to it. 
Then, read up on how others have done it. Might I suggest this vintage copy of Dr. Who and the Loch Ness Monster? As Columba teaches, one can never do enough reading.
Finally, you are ready. Take a trip down to Busch Gardens, Williamsburg, and ride the Loch Ness Monster roller coaster. As you approach speeds of 60 mph, plunging down towards Nessie’s home in the lake, scream out your best admonitions to godly behavior to the deep.
And then, as you stumble off the coaster, dazed and confused, and avoiding the other creeped-out patrons who are now calling security, you will feel a sense of peace which passes all understanding For you have completed the Pilgrimage of Columba Kitsch.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
When German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer (born in 1906) was a teenager, a new word was coined in German….kitschen, meaning “to throw together a work of art.” This quickly evolved into the English word “kitsch,” a noun meaning “something of tawdry design, appearance, or content created to appeal to popular or undiscriminating taste.”
Kitsch? Bonhoeffer? How can we even think of putting such a distinguished theologian in the same sentence as this often disdainful word?
But, if you are a fan of Bonhoeffer, hoping, praying, and voting that he will be awarded the coveted Lent Madness Golden Halo, you may launch your very own collection of Bonhoeffer kitsch before this 2016 Lent Madness bracket is completed!
Let’s begin your collection with items you might wear, such as Bonhoeffer-emblazoned shirts & hats:
Or, perhaps Bonhoeffer “cheap grace” pajamas (don’t go there…) are more your style for remembering him in the privacy of your own home:
And, my personal favorite, allows you to start your child or grandchild off on his or her spiritual path with the Bonhoeffer Baby Bib (available with blue, pink or gender-neutral green trim):
(you can’t make this up, folks!)
Of course, since Bonhoeffer was Lutheran and Lutherans are famous for that third sacrament, coffee, your collection must include a coffee mug or two:
These items (and more!) are readily found at online stores CafePress and Zazzle.
But, if you want to get a jump on Dietrich Bonhoeffer with his golden halo already well in place, the good people at Trinitystores.com gave me permission to share with you that they have a fine array of icons as well as candles, notecards and other gift items for your collection featuring the iconography of Lewis Williams.
Who said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder? Well, my Google search indicates that there is some dispute about this. Whoever said it, this opportunity for you to enhance your home or office with your very own collection of Bonhoeffer memorabilia, some serious and some not so serious, certainly proves the point!
In Dietrich Bonhoeffer: A Biography authors Eberhard Bethge & Victoria J. Barnett report that Paul Lehmann, who knew Bonhoeffer in the 1930’s at Union Theological Seminary reported of him “His aristocracy was unmistakable yet not obtrusive, chiefly, I think owing to his boundless curiosity about every new environment in which he found himself and to his irresistible and unfailing sense of humor.” I’m so glad he had an unfailing sense of humor with all of this Bonhoeffer kitsch available for purchase!
The most important point is that while we can chuckle over this memorabilia, we remember Bonhoeffer as a martyred theologian with much to say to us about being faithful Christians in these often challenging 21st century days!
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146 comments on “Columba vs. Dietrich Bonhoeffer”
Iona has such appeal and Columba was such an awesome person. Bonhoeffer should have stayed in the U.S. but he made a tough choice. Today I have a tough choice too.
A visit to Iona remains one of my most memorable spiritual moments. So Columba wins today. This however was such a rough one.
Not fair...two of ny favorites facing off. Sigh. Why I both love and hate Lent Madness! Today I will go with Bonhoeffer for his truly qualifying to be a saint.
Bonhoeffer. His wisdom is needed in this time.
Seriously, truly, Bonhoeffer is the saint for these times! He gets my vote!
Gotta get the Nessie ladle. Gotta go to Iona. Had to vote for Bonhoeffer.
Columba, probably because of the joy brought to me this morning by reading the Celebrity Blogger's entreaty. Thank you, Megan.
Love the ladle! Columba for me.
The Nessie Ladle is great - I'm buying several today but my heart belongs to Deitrich.
SEC: how about Golden Halo Winnet Bobble Heads?
That's winners not Winnets
Kitsch, shmitsch! Nessie, Schmessie! Bonhoeffer all the way to the Golden Halo. One reply mentioned that Dietrich advocated killing Hitler but that murder could never be justified..I must disagree. Had the plot to murder that monster BEEN SUCCESSFUL WWII may have ended sooner with much less bloodshed and loss of lives, especially Jewish citizens who died in concentration camps. He paid for the aborted mission and was hanged and his remains never found. A perfect example of CHEAP GRACE. BLOG ON FEARLESS ONES.
The Columba kitsch is SO good, but I am ultimately too curious about a Bonhoeffer - Truth match up!
Too terrible to contemplate!
Alas, I will likely lose one of the two saints I have voted for through all the rounds so far. I only hope that my last remaining full-vote saint will survive to the Golden Halo!!
Having faced Nessie both at the Loch and more times than I can count at Williamsburg and having seen my uncle have a religious experience on said coaster I have to go with Columba today.
I am now very curious about your uncle's religious experience on the Loch Ness Monster coaster.
Sehr gute!
Oh, I wanted to see a Winnet bobble head--it sounds so British.
I meant the opposite of CHEAP GRACE! What Bonhoeffer meant was the truth about real grace as it pertained to "faith without works".
Columba of course needed to be my choice. Not only am I at the mercy of Oliver's lead, as MacCallum' s we are direct descendants Columba.
I voted for Columba.
Sadly, yesterday I did not vote, due to my annual fusion gig, playing Irish music in a Mexican restaurant run by Peruvians. In fact, I never got around to checking email yesterday. So kudos to Julian of Norwich.
Thanks Dolores & St. Celia for your thoughtful comments each day. You both contribute to the learning process that is Lent Madness.
Oh thank you!
Agreed!
For a piece of ultimate kitsch, what is better than the Book of Kells. It was possibly created to commemorate the two-hundredth anniversary of the death of St. Columba. At the very least, it has strong connections with the monasteries of Saint Columba and of the island of Iona.
The Book of Kells is now thought to have been written on Iona and taken to Kells as a result of the Viking raids.
This is truly the hardest of choices for me. I am a Scot and love Bonhoeffer. However, I do own a Nessie ladle, and how could I possibly ignore Dr. Who, Zygons and Nessie, for I am also a Whovian? Columba it is. Also, those Cheap Grace pj's were rather pricey.
I thought the same thing about the pjs, Diane!
WOW... I feel as if I've completely misunderstood this round! I've been pretty much ignoring all the kitsch ... reading it, yes, for entertainment purposes, but giving it no weight and instead turning to Google for my daily dose of more info about the competitors. And insofar as Bonhoeffer is concerned, I'm not surprised that there's little or no fun or funny kitsch ... it would be in appallingly bad taste to make light of the events of his life or his death. The wounds are still too fresh for too many. As they say "Too soon. Too soon!"
I want to go to Iona, I _love_ the Columba kitsch, but...I'm writing this as I'm listening to Supreme Court nominee wrangling on NPR.
Gotta go for Bonhoeffer--we need someone like him (without the assassination attempt, though).
I've ridden the Loch Ness Monster in Williamsburg - it is a great roller coaster. And I laughed out loud at the Nessie Ladle! I will be headed to Amazon to order one soon. But my vote went to Bonhoeffer today.
The Nessie handle ladle did it for me! Columba!
Columba gets my vote...I admit, it was the Dr. Who reference that sealed the deal! If the series had been around back then, I'm sure Columba would have been a fan. Fellow Whovians, I call on you to unite and send Columba to the final four!
I must mention, sadly, that I was unable to read any of the inscriptions on the Bonhoeffer items. I don't know if the fault is that of my aging eyes or my equally aging computer (in computer years the thing must be rivaling Methuselah) but I could not get the pictures to enlarge nor could I zoom in on the script.
However, this did not influence my vote, although I wish I could have voted for both holy men.
This is how to do it on an iPad:
Hold a finger on the image until a list of options, which should include "save image," appears.
Tap that option.
Go to your Photo library, where you should find a copy of the image that you can enlarge, just like your other photos, by spreading it with your thumbs.
Hopefully other systems have similar processes.
I appreciate greatly that Bonhoeffer stood firm as a Christian against the tyranny of Fascism... a voice we clearly need today.
I knew this would be a tough one. But in the end, it was the pajamas that got me. Bonhoeffer FTW!!
I love all the Columba entries, especially today's kitsch journey which is brilliant and funny.
Bonhoeffer won my vote today, though. He remained steadfast in his mission to help the people of Germany, when so many others fled or participated in the madness.
Let's remember that both Iona and Loch Ness are in SCOTLAND.