Today we have the final battle of the Elate Eight as Johann Sebastian Bach faces Martin de Porres. In 24 hours the Faithful Four will be set! One of these two saints will join Joanna the Myrrhbearer, Jonathan Daniels, and Chief Seattle (who defeated Bertha of Kent yesterday 55% to 45%) as one of the last four saints standing in Lent Madness 2023.
To get to this round, Bach bested Harriet Monsell and Richard Hooker, while Martin defeated Maximus the Confessor and Leoba. (Note to Kitsch Kranks: click on these links to view the write-ups from previous rounds).
After Palm Sunday weekend, we'll be back on Monday morning to close out this year's tournament just before the start of the Great Three Days.
Vote now!
Johann Sebastian Bach
All too often, your humble celebrity bloggers don’t have much to work with in terms of saintly memorabilia. Not so for Johann Sebastian Bach! There is merch in every possible medium–shirts, hats, socks, and coasters; stately posters and sedate books; sheet music and recorded performances.
I was overwhelmed, honestly. I needed to take a step Bach, and consider my options–go Bach to basics, if you will. Merch is one thing, but kitsch is special. Kitsch is rarefied air.
For example:
Bach bust: merch.
Bach nutcracker: kitsch.
Bach Bach: Bach.
It got clear pretty fast that I would only be able to scratch the surface of Bacchic* kitsch. These guys get it.
Maybe you want to curl up with your favorite cantata, like a cozy blanket.
Maybe you want a Bach you can play with now, and step on in the middle of the night later. Did you know that is how the soprano hits the high A in Jauchzet Gott in allen Lande?
A warning to saintly shoppers: “Bach” has seemingly replaced “Bachelorette.” If you just search for “Bach,” well…perusing those search results would make the Kapellmeister himself blush. But perhaps you’re feeling cheeky! 
If anyone asks you who’s getting married, you can tell them it’s for Johann Sebastian and Anna Magdalena.
People once collected vintage records. But apparently there’s now a growing market for vintage…CDs! I thought this one was particularly lovely. And a nice reminder that Bach wrote music for every text and every feast of the church year.
I also loved this one, with Bach and Leopold Stokowski conferring over a score.
Because of course, it’s Leopold Stokowski (and Mickey Mouse) who introduced many children to Bach’s music for the first time–in that 1940 classic, Fantasia.
*Meaning of or relating to the worship of Bach, right?
Martin de Porres
Martin refused to eat meat. Here he is as a vegetable:
Martin was known to levitate when he prayed. I don’t think he used “wingardum leviosa” from Harry Potter, but…….
As the patron saint of misfits, the forgotten, and lonely, 
Martin is also the patron saint of animal shelters. Everyone simply wants to belong:
If you struggle to remember the teachings of St. Martin to include, welcome, care, and love, you can wear his prayer around your neck to keep you on track:
If a necklace isn’t enough to keep Martin’s teachings on your mind, you can put St. Martin in your pocket here.
But to really incorporate St. Martin into your life, live Micah 8:6:
135 comments on “Johann Sebastian Bach vs. Martin de Porres”
I love the kitsch & merch days - even saints have their lighter moments. Bach & Stokowsky conferring is a highlight here!
Now for a spot of the Matthew Passion to get back to a Lenten frame of mind.
I miss the limericks and hymns! I hope the authors are well....
And the songs from musicals. I miss those!
Much as I love Bach, and could listen to him all day, and knowing how devoted he was, I still have to cast my vote for Martin. His work for inclusion is as vital today as it was then; even more so, perhaps. And the blogger sealed the deal with one of my top 4 favorite Bible quotes which is posted right in front of me on my desk.
There’s significantly more St Martin de Porres kitsch in your local botanica. Candles, potions, figurines.
Buy Martin. Vote Johann.
Best kitsch ever! Both outdid themselves, but Eva gets the Kitsch Halo! I had to vote for JSB, whose music has changed hearts and lives for centuries, and may account for conversions as well. I want him to win this round, but am hoping that the (relatively) unknown Jonathan Daniels gets the gold.
He was from Keene, NH, a few miles over the border from me. I’ve known about him for years, and was surprised by the comments indicating many folks hadn’t heard of him. So thanks, Lent Madness SEC, for introducing this young martyr to your widespread audience!
The Micah quote—my favorite in the Old Testament almost got Martin the vote. However, I grew up with Bach (piano and organ lessons), and after 60 years, I’ll stay with my friend.
For this year's Golden Halo, I vote for ... the Bloggers! Awesome job, Blognoscenti! A+ effort on the Kitsch round! I'm not quite ready to put a plastic glow-in-the-dark Virgin on my dashboard, but my stance toward kitsch has softened greatly. And honestly, it's not the kitsch itself; it's the witty commentary and the creativity. You guys are a very, very creative bunch, like Bach, for whom I voted. I hope you will all, like him, "be Bach."
The glory of Bach's music is unsurpassed in worshiping God. Countless generations have been blessed by his works. Have to vote Bach today!
Hi everyone!
Wait until later in the morning to vote, and then all troubles have been resolved. That’s my kitsch shtick. 🙂
Listened to and watched the Atlanta Symphony's glorious performance of St. Matthew Passion last night. Bach for me!
I was there, too! Weren’t those chorales heavenly! Moved me to tears at one point.
Even though I was pretty sure Bach would win this one, I really wanted to vote for Martin. Anna Fitch Courie provided me with the perfect reason by sharing the prayer found on the St. Martin medal. How I need every one of those intercessions.
The patron saint of animal shelters gets my
Vote today although I am still laughing over the Bach kitsch! Good job finding all the “stuff”…
Bach Bach!
Best kitsch ever (for both).
Martin is saintly, loving, inclusive, but Bach's music brings God to me every day.
I voted for Martin because he is the patron saint of animal shelters.
Bach's write up is the best! But the last item in Martin's got me: Love mercy , act justly, walk humbly. May I do the same! Martin got my vote.
Mine too same reasons!!!!
I’m voting for Bach because I really want to be in his choir once I get to heaven. Hopefully my vote for him in Lent Madness will look good on my CV when it comes to selection time.
It goes without saying what a gift Bach's music is to the world, and the kitsch that Eva Suarez found is fantastic. I voted for Martin de Porres, however, because he is a saint I was not familiar with, and his story inspired me. Bach will always "be Bach" in one way or another. I'm giving a chance to the lesser known saint today. If you're looking for some additional Martin kitsch, tinysaints.com has a charm for purchase.
https://www.tinysaints.com/products/saint-martin-de-porres
Thank you for this link! Three Episcopal Churches recently merged in the Northern Virginia area and we have chosen the name of St. Martin's for our new identity. Just ordered some of this kitsch.
Glad to see the close vote! As a musician, I have to vote for Bach, but both bloggers did great with the kitsch round!
Much as I enjoyed all the Bach-analia, my outreach is with the misfits, the forgotten, and the lonely, so Martin get my vote.
It was the Micah quote that did it for me! C'mon Martin!!
Having just been to a performance of St. Matthew’s Passion last night—for 3-1/2 hours!—I am even more resolute in my vote for Herr Bach. To think of the influence this man has had for three hundred years on millions of people—! He has “preached” the gospel again and again and again.
Bach, along with other classical composers, are often played in the animal shelters that Martin is saint of in order to keep the animals calm and *feel loved*. That alone says to me that Bach is a healthy choice. (The animals that Martin so loved also ate meat, even if he didn’t.)
The music of Bach has often been said to bring a mortal as close to heaven as they could get without dying. I find that to be the truest statement, outside of the Bible, that I have ever heard.
Eva Suarez’s kitschy comments made me snort my coffee! It’s “Bach to the Future” for me. Bach lived and shared his faith with every composition he wrote. Even to this very day, we are singing God’s praises through his music. Last Sunday, our church featured a carillon concert, and one of the pieces the Carillonneur played was the opening chorus of Bach’s St. Matthew’s Passion. Imagine! Bach’s music ringing out over my city for all to hear. In 2023. Still playing. Gosh.
I've been playing violin since I was a child. Music has always been a significant part of my life and Bach has always been one of, if not my favorite, composers. He was featured in two pieces at my wedding and it always makes Sunday Eucharist feel a little extra special and holy when one of his pieces are featured.
With that said, however, I have to go with Martin de Porres. His humble actions in the midst of adversity are truly saintly in my eyes. He cared for the sick and needy regardless of socioeconomic or ethnic background. He fed the poor, healed the sick, found residence for orphans and abandoned children, distributed money to the indigent, and even offered to sell himself to help his convent when it was in debt. He did all this despite the fact that he was barred from becoming a full member of the church, even mocked by some of its fellow priests, simply because he was of mixed race (they did finally allow him to profess his vows as a lay brother). Martin was a humble man who was called to the simple act of loving one another.
Martin is the patron saint of mixed-race people, public health workers, and all those seeking racial harmony. In this time of COVID and the many civil rights issues still plaguing our world today, he is someone we can all learn and be inspired by.
This is a hard one, because Martin was a truly saintly man I would be happy to vote for in almost any situation, but Sebastian is not only one of the greatest composers, he's also a model of faithfulness. His finest works in most cases are written to call the faithful to an even closer walk with God.
I choir I used to sing with made it a habit to sing the Bach cantata "Christ lag in Todesbanden" every Easter at the Holy Cross Monastery in West Park, NY. Each time we sang it was one of the high points of my singing life.
Certainly not a one-hit-wonder, Sebastian also wrote cantatas for each week of the liturgical year (good grief, that's a LOT of music!) and tons of organ works, many of which have a distinct religious basis (I'm talkin' 'bout YOU, "Saint Anne Fugue"!)
Singing in community choirs, I very frequently ran into singers of the Jewish faith who joyfully sang Bach music because he was truly transcendent. I think the old master would have been absolutely delighted at that.
Sorry Martin, but Sebastian got my vote.
Each year at our church we do a Lunch Lenten Recital series on Wednesdays during Lent. The theme this year is Bach. This past Wednesday featured our own organist with "Bach Three Ways!" I didn't know what that meant until I arrived and saw three setups. He started with "Sinfonia" from Partita No. 2 on Piano. Next was Cello Suite No. 1 in G major, of course on Cello! Finally, Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor on organ. We are blessed to have such a talented Organist and Choir Master. Plus we have a fabulous organ setup. It was all Magnificent! Of course I have to vote for Bach!
Wow this was a hard choice! And they’re neck & neck. But Eva’s ‘Bach. Bach. Bach’. Hahahaha!!
The patron saint of misfits and animal shelters. That describes my household. Yes, music is a glorious medium for worship; but the rescued cat on my lap tells me that Christ is in mercy and loving care. Please vote for Martin.
My house as well!
My Mom is German (making me half German) and I love music, so how could I not vote for Bach.
Truly outstanding write-up of J.S. Back by the Rev. Eva Suarez. I tried to find an e-mail address for her on the website of Saint John the Divine, probably because of my own lack of cybernetic sophistication. So, by resort to this comment section, huzzah and well-done for a delightful blurb.