In the second matchup of the Elate Eight, Phocas the Gardener faces Richard Hooker. Our ever-creative Celebrity Bloggers daily earn their keep (well, their Lent Madness mug) in the Round of Saintly Kitsch as they scour the internet for your voting pleasure. To make it to this round, Phocas bested Isidore the Farmer and Katharina von Bora while Richard made it past Mary of Egypt and Margaret of Scotland.

Yesterday, Esther narrowly defeated Peter, in an epic start to the Elate Eight, to become the first saint to advance to the Faithful Four.

Can you feel the excitement? We are getting ever closer to awarding the 2018 Golden Halo. Every vote counts!

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Congratulations! You've stuck with Lent Madness as a Lenten devotion and the field has been whittled down from 32 saints to eight. After a long and winding road, we have made it to the Round of the Elate Eight. There is now light at the end of the Golden Halo and by the end of the week we’ll be down to the Faithful Four.

We begin this round with an epic battle of Biblical proportions as Peter faces Esther. To make it this far, Peter defeated Paul and John the Evangelist while Esther got past Lazarus of Bethany and Michael the Archangel. The remaining matchups in this round are Phocas the Gardener vs. Richard Hooker, Martin de Porres vs. Maria Skobtsova, and Anna Alexander vs. Eglantyne Jebb. One of these eight will win the 2018 Golden Halo.

The Elate Eight is also known as the Saintly Kitsch round. After basic biographies, quotes and quirks, what else could there be? There are always some folks who take offense to this approach — we call them Kitsch Kranks. Tim and Scott discussed this in yesterday's edition of Monday Madness. This is not to belittle or demean our saintly heroes but to have some fun and gaze in wide wonder at the breadth of devotional practice. So kindly relax and enjoy the spirit of the Madness as we push ever onward to our goal.

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This week, Tim and Scott span the globe. Tim comes live from coffee country in Nicaragua. Scott is in Cincinnati. And they are both live, discussing the Elate Eight. They also warn about people who could be grumpy about this round, so the Supreme Executive Committee once again delivers the two great commandments of Lent Madness.

Check out the bracket tab as you plan your week around Lent Madness Elate Eight contests. Best thing is to vote once (and once only) but refresh your browser dozens of times an hour to check results constantly.

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Today in Lent Madness, it's the last matchup of the Saintly Sixteen as Eglantyne Jebb squares off against Catherine Winkworth in the Lent Dome. To get to this round Eglantyne routed Seraphim of Sarov while Catherine upset Isaac Watts.

If you had a big weekend and/or your memory is shaky, on Friday Martin de Porres defeated Dymphna 62% to 38% to advance to the Elate Eight where she'll face Maria Skobtsova.

Tomorrow we begin the Elate Eight, aka the Round of Saintly Kitsch as Peter faces Esther. Hold on to your Bibles, folks!

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Today in the Saintly Smackdown©, Martin de Porres faces Dymphna, as we move between 17th century Peru and 7th century Belgium. To get to the Saintly Sixteen, Martin eased past John of Beverley while Dympha defeated Gertrude of Nivelles.

Yesterday, Phocas the Gardener took down Katharina von Bora 60% to 40% to advance to the Elate Eight against Richard Hooker. This marks the second year in a row that a member of the Luther Family will not win the Golden Halo. Last year, Katharina's husband, some guy named Martin, made it to the Faithful Four before running into the Florence Nightingale juggernaut.

It's hard to believe but the last battle of the Saintly Sixteen will take place on Monday as Eglantyne Jebb faces Catherine Winkworth. Then it's on to the Elate Eight! Enjoy today's vote and we'll see you first thing Monday morning.

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The Quotes and Quirks of the Saintly Sixteen continue as Phocas the Gardener faces Katharina von Bora. To make it to this round, Phocas defeated Isidore the Farmer while Katharina took down Wulfstan. Today's winner will face Richard Hooker.

Don't forget, the Saintly Sixteen write-ups are not the sum of what has been shared about each saint by our Celebrity Bloggers. Click the links above or scroll down on the bracket page to supplement your knowledge of our daily contestants.

Yesterday, the great controversy surrounding whether or not it was "fair" to stick an angel in the bracket was decided as Esther soundly dismantled Michael the Archangel 70% to 30%. This sets up the first Elate Eight matchup, a sure-to-be epic battle between Peter and Esther. Now go vote!

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Today in Saintly Sixteen action, Esther squares off against Michael the Archangel. To make it this far, Esther made it past Lazarus while Michael got by Anna the Prophet. Will St. Michael or one of the "all angels" prevail?

Yesterday, Anna Alexander made it past Edith Cavell 65% to 35% to advance to the Elate Eight. She'll face the winner of Eglantyne Jebb vs. Catherine Winkworth. By the way, our Bracket Czar Adam Thomas delved into bracket history and has ruled that Monday's battle that saw Maria Skobtsova trounce Quiteria 91% to 9% was the most lopsided victory ever in the modern era of Lent Madness. The previous record was from 2014 when Basil defeated Antony of Egypt 87% to 13%.

Oh, and did you miss the Tuesday edition of Monday Madness? If you can stand the planets being out of alignment, watch it here.

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Due to technical difficulties and the burdens of exotic travel (to Beachwood, Ohio and Treasure Island, Florida), Scott and Tim are a day late with "Monday" Madness this week. Rest assured, it was recorded on Monday (we have some truth-in-advertising standards!), so you can enjoy the full Monday "live" ambience. The episode is worth the wait though, as Tim reveals his plan to try to escape Lent Madness and Scott shows his love of exotic locations for video backdrops.

Make sure you consider carefully how you vote in the Saintly Sixteen, because soon enough it will be time for the Elate Eight. Every (single) vote counts!

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The Saintly Sixteen continues with a matchup between two inspiring women, Anna Alexander and Edith Cavell. To get to this round, Anna got by Peter Claver while Edith surprised John Wesley.

Yesterday, Maria Skobtsova advanced to the Elate Eight by trouncing Quiteria by what is likely a record margin, 91% to 9%. We're too lazy to look back at all the previous matchups to figure out if this is an actual record margin, but knock yourself out and let us know. She'll face the winner of Martin de Porres vs. Dymphna.

"Hey, wait," you're thinking to yourself, "What happened to this week's episode of Monday Madness?" Don't worry, you're not losing a step. Due to some technical difficulties based on being in exotic locales like outside-of-Cleveland, there was a glitch in the production process. Look for a better-late-than-never edition later today.

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Lent Madness is back for an another action-packed week and so is the Saintly Sixteen. Today Maria Skobtsova faces Quiteria. Russian nun vs. nonuplet warrior. To get to this round, Maria defeated Thomas à Kempis and Quiteria bested Genesius (remember him?).

If you've forgotten what happened last Friday, which seems hard to imagine since the weekend was one hour shorter than usual, Richard Hooker defeated Margaret of Scotland 64% to 36% to advance to the Elate Eight against the winner of Phocas the Gardener vs. Katharina von Bora.

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