In a shocking, bracket-busting upset, yesterday's matchup ended with Brother Lawrence driving out St. Patrick from Lent Madness 2020 57% to 43%. Erin go bragh? Erin go HOME!

Today we have an intriguing matchup between two saints of different eras. Margaret of Costello was a blind, disabled medieval nun who overcame great hardship to follow her faith. Simon Gibbons was Canada's first Inuit priest, born in the mid-19th century.

With this decision, the door will close on the first full week of Lent Madness 2020. From here on out, voting will take place only on the weekdays of Lent. Which means the Lent Madness faithful must suffer the indignity of Lent Madness Withdrawal (LMW) on the weekends of Lent. This is a difficult condition to endure and, at this time, there is no known cure. Please be kind to yourselves, friends. And we'll see you bright and early on Monday morning as James Solomon Russell faces Evelyn Underhill.

Now go vote!

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One of the joys of examining the lives of the saints is observing how their lives take twists and turns that lead them to the places they are ultimately called to serve. This is the case with both Brother Lawrence, whose life was forever transformed through his experience as a soldier, and Patrick, whose early years as a slave in a foreign country changed the trajectory of his life. Through simple faith and legendary acts, the lives of these two faithful servants of Jesus begin to shine through. And yet, only one will advance to the Saintly Sixteen.

Yesterday, in the biggest margin of victory of Lent Madness 2020 to date, Joseph trounced Joshua 73% to 27% to advance to the Saintly Sixteen, where he'll face the Biblical Elizabeth. None of this gets easier as we move ever closer to the awarding of the Golden Halo.

Time to vote!

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Well, well, well. In what many pundits are calling the first upset of Lent Madness 2020, Herman of Alaska dispatched Elizabeth of Hungary yesterday 58% to 42%. This means that the first matchup of the Saintly Sixteen has been finalized as Herman will face Thomas More for a shot at the Elate Eight.

Today, it's back to the Bible as Joseph -- no, not the Israelite patriarch, but the "father" of Jesus -- squares off against Joshua of Promised Land fame. Will Joseph be buried upside down? Or will the walls come a-tumblin' down on Joshua. That's the question of the day as the First Round continues. Go vote!

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A Tuesday during Lent, can mean only one thing: time to cast a vote in Lent Madness! But first, some results. Yesterday, Eva Lee Matthews soundly defeated Hervé (and his little dog too!) 61% to 39%.

Today, the second of the four Elizabeths in the 2020 bracket makes an appearance, as Elizabeth of Hungary takes on Herman of Alaska. Will this 13th century Hungarian royal with the generous heart prevail? Or will it be the Russian-born 18th century missionary monk? Two compelling saints but, alas, only one will move on to the Saintly Sixteen.

In case you missed yesterday globe-trotting edition of Monday Madness (and if you did...for shame!), you can watch it here. In it, we gave a shout out to the good people of St. Stephen's in Terra Haute, IN, who have embraced Lent Madness with reckless abandon. Read an article in the local paper about their foray into the Saintly Smackdown, led by their pastor, the Rev. Drew Downs.

And if you have compelling stories or photos to share from your own context, please do send them our way. Now go vote!

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In the first in-season episode of Lent Madness 2020, Tim and Scott offer globe-spanning, action-packed commentary for you, the Lent Madness global viewing public. They highlight the raging Lent Madness excitement in places such as Kuala Lumpur and Terre Haute, two locations which have, perhaps, never before been placed in the same sentence. At least in the context of an online Lenten devotion.

Check out this article in the Tribune-Star about how Lent Madness has taken over at St. Stephen's Church in the aforementioned Terre Haute.

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Welcome back! After a day off from voting, we hope you're ready for the first full week of Lent Madness action. On Friday, we saw Eustace behave like a deer in the headlights against Margery Kempe, as he was slain 70% to 30%.

Today's matchup features a late-19th century American nun vs. a 6th century French monk, in a monastic showdown between Eva Lee Matthews and Hervé.

As you read, reflect, and vote, don't forget you also have a built-in opportunity to pray. Each saintly write-up in the opening round includes a collect (pronounced COLL-ect), or brief prayer, inspired by the respective saints. Some days you may breeze past them or ignore them altogether, but we do encourage you to linger when you can. Perhaps there's a phrase that jumps out at you or connects to your own Lenten journey. Anyway, we just wanted to point out that small morsel of added bread for your journey.

Since it's Monday, stay tuned later today as Tim and Scott thrill Lent Madness fans everywhere with another exciting episode of Monday Madness. Same Lent time, same Lent channel.

Now go vote!

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Welcome to the one and only Saturday matchup of Lent Madness 2020. From here on out every contest will take place exclusively on the weekdays of Lent. In a word, today is SPECIAL! And to mark this special occasion, Margery Kempe, a 14th century mystic, takes on Eustace, an early Christian soldier.

Yesterday, Elizabeth soundly defeated Andrew 63% to 37% in a battle of Biblical saints. We're still waiting for that first real nail-biter, but fear not! You're guaranteed to have a number of them before our work is done here.

By the way, if you need to check out the results from previous matchups or view the updated bracket, just head over to the bracket page. Our trusty Bracket Czar, Adam Thomas, updates the page every day, in his inimitable manner.

Now go enjoy your Saturday and don't forget to vote!

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After a rousing first day of Lent Madness 2020, in which Thomas More routed James the Less 68% to 32% amid heavy voting (over 10,000 votes cast), we're on to day two. And we've established, once and for all, that less is not more. At least in this year's edition of the Saintly Smackdown.

Today, you're invited to gird your loins for a battle of Biblical proportions as two Scriptural saints face off. Now, you may be aware that this year's bracket features a quartet of Elizabeths, one in each quadrant: The Biblical Elizabeth, Elizabeth of Hungary, Elizabeth the New Martyr, and Elizabeth Frye. Will the four Elizabeths make up the Faithful Four? Only time and your votes will tell (though the oddsmakers in Vegas are dubious).

Today we encounter the first of the four Elizabeths, she of the Bible, who takes on Andrew the apostle.

But before you read, reflect, and vote (hopefully in that order), we wanted to share an article about Lent Madness that appeared in the San Diego Union Tribune. Partly because it's a nice article about this little devotion of ours, but mostly because we like cities named for saints.

Also, note that tomorrow is the ONLY non-weekday vote of Lent Madness. Margery Kempe will square off against Eustace. So don't forget to head over here to make your pick.

Okay, enough blathering on. Time to see whether Elizabeth or Andrew will be cast out of Lent Madness 2020!

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Welcome to the opening matchup of Lent Madness 2020! If you're a veteran of the Saintly Smackdown, we're delighted you're back for another year of saintly thrills and spills. If you're joining us for the first time, we're especially glad you're along for this wild penitential ride. If you're curious about what this all entails, check out the About Lent Madness tab on the website.

To experience the fullness of the Lent Madness experience, the Supreme Executive Committee (the somewhat benevolent dictatorship that runs this whole enterprise) encourages you to do several things. First, like Lent Madness on Facebook and/or follow us on Twitter. Second, subscribe to the Lent Madness e-mails so you never miss a vote -- you'll get each matchup hand-delivered to your inbox on the weekdays of Lent. You can do this by going to the home page of our website and entering your e-mail address (near the top right). Third, you can support the ministry of Lent Madness by heading over to the Lentorium and purchasing Lent Madness swag, thereby impressing everyone on your block. Or at least in your pew.

But mostly, we encourage you to read about the 32 saints participating in this year’s edition of Lent Madness, faithfully cast your (single!) vote on the weekdays of Lent, and add your comments to the great cloud of participating witnesses that gathers as the online Lent Madness community each year. If you're wondering when your favorite saint will be competing - in order to rally your friends and neighbors (creative campaigning is encouraged, voter fraud is not) - you can check out the 2020 Matchup Calendar.

Things kick off with an early 16th century Anglican facing off against a Biblical character as Thomas More clashes with James the Less. We hope you enjoy reading about these two saintly souls, more or less, before casting your very first vote of Lent Madness 2020! We're glad you're all here. Now get to it!

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Dear friends in Christ,

Every year, even Lent Madness pauses on this one day. On Ash Wednesday, we set aside our silliness as we are reminded of our mortality and our need of salvation. This year, more than ever, our world needs Lent and its invitation to return to Jesus Christ.

We live in a world that is gripped by fear and hatred. Too many of our national leaders seem intent on steering to the low road. Time seems to be in short supply as jobs, families, and various electronic gizmos compete for our attention. Now more than ever, we need Lent.

Lent is, above all else, an invitation to turn away from those things which keep us from following Jesus — and to turn toward those things which draw us closer to our Lord and savior. As St. Paul says, “Now is the acceptable time; see, now is the day of salvation!”

Now is the time for us to renounce fear, to reject hatred, and to take the more difficult high road. Now is the time to make space in our lives for prayer, study, and worship. Now is the time to look carefully at our lives and to open up our hearts to change. Thanks be to God, the church has given us an entire season to do just these things.

On Ash Wednesday, we are reminded of our mortality. It might seem gloomy, but in fact it is an invitation to savor this earthly life as a precious gift and to live it well. Jesus Christ wants us to have life and have it abundantly, and Ash Wednesday reminds us that we don’t really have that long to get to it. So let’s do that, shall we?

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