Welcome to the ONE AND ONLY Saturday matchup of Lent Madness 2025! Today in a battle between two popular saints with fascinating backstories, it's Elizabeth of Hungary vs. Felicity.
Yesterday, Emily Cooper trounced Dunstan 82% to 18% to advance to the Saintly Sixteen.
We'll see you at church for the First Sunday in Lent (Great Litany, anyone?) and then see you back here first thing Monday morning for the first full week of saintly action as Gregory the Great takes on Hugh of Lincoln.
Vote now!
On this second day of Lent Madness 2025, we continue our alphabetical journey through the bracket as Emily Cooper faces off against Dunstan. 19th century American deaconess vs. 10th century English bishop. In other words, the kind of wacky matchup you will only find right here at Lent Madness.
Yesterday, Athanasius of Alexandria deterred Richard Meux Benson 61% to 39% to become the first saint to advance to the Saintly Sixteen. Yes, there were a few Opening Day glitches, but in the end, everyone's votes got counted -- despite the occasional error message. Thanks for your forbearance as we continue to address issues as they arise.
We're excited to offer another fun and helpful resource created by Lent Madness super fan Lindsey Hardegree. Click here to download a free template to help you track your saintly predictions, keep notes on saints that particularly inspire you, and keep a personal record Lent Madness history. Thanks, Lindsey!
And don't forget that tomorrow is the ONLY Saturday matchup of the season as Elizabeth of Hungary takes on Felicity. After this matchup, all voting will take place exclusively on the weekdays of Lent (it's a math thing, you wouldn't understand).
Time to vote!
We're back! Welcome to the opening matchup of Lent Madness 2025 or, if you speak Latin in the home, Lent Madness XVI. This year we're going A to Z with our saints, and we kick things off with Athanasius of Alexandria vs. Richard Meux Benson (that's the A vs. B, for the alphabetically challenged). Of course, these two saints are much than their letter lineage. But that's what our amazing Celebrity Bloggers are here for -- to bring to life the varied aspects of our saintly lineup over the coming weeks.
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 is all about, or you've been coerced into participating by a friend, spouse, or member of the clergy, check out the About Lent Madness tab on the website. We assure you this is not fake news about a fake online Lenten devotion. Lent Madness is a real thing!
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. 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 in your virtual 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 2025 Matchup Calendar.
To aid in your enjoyment of Lent Madness this year, check out two excellent resources created by fans. Fr. David Simmons has once again created printable stickers for use on your giant bracket posters. You can print these stickers on standard Avery labels. Download for free here and here. And as the Supreme Executive Committee highlighted in this week's Monday Madness, you can also use these fantastic Lent Madness trading cards created by Allison Bird Treacy.
Now, go cast your VERY FIRST VOTE of Lent Madness 2025!
Welcome to the FINAL matchup of the round of 32. The 16th battle of Lent Madness XV is underway as we offer up a choice between Rafqa of Lebanon and Claire of Assisi. Yes, it's the patron saint of knitting vs. the patron saint of needlepoint in the Thread Count Throwdown.
In yesterday's action between the only two Silver Halo winners in Lent Madness history, Julian of Norwich eased past Brigid of Kildare 63% to 37%. She'll face Zita in the next round.
Vote now!
Today, in one of the most highly anticipated matchups of Lent Madness XV, we pit the only two official Silver Halo winners (as graciously awarded by the Supreme Executive Committee) in history against one another, as Brigid of Kildare faces Julian of Norwich (yes, we know it's unfair, etc, etc, but remember this is Lent Madness not Lent Sanity). In 2015, Brigid took home the Silver Halo, after falling to Francis of Assisi, while in 2016, Julian received the Silver Halo, losing to Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
Yesterday, Gertrude won. Well, to be specific, Gertrude the Great defeated Gertrude of Nivelles 63% to 37%.
And just in case you missed yesterday's episode of Monday Madness, in which Tim and Scott actually appear TOGETHER, you can watch it here.
Vote now!
Welcome back! This week, we'll conclude the Round of 32 and get our first peek at the Saintly Sixteen. But first, it's The Great Gertrude Game as Gertrude the Great faces Gertrude of Nivelles. And, yes, cats are involved.
On Friday, Cornelius the Centurion snuck past Piran of Cornwall 53% to 47% to advance to the Saintly Sixteen, where he'll tangle with Adomnan of Iona.
Vote now!
Today in Lent Madness XV, it's the long-anticipated battle known as the Children of the Corn, as Piran of Cornwall faces Cornelius the Centurion. We invite you to lend an ear to hear about these two saints. And we do not apologize for the corny humor, for even in its midst, there is a kernel of truth.
Yesterday, Henry Whipple decisively defeated Jackson Kemper 71% to 29% to advance to the Saintly Sixteen.
Vote now!
Welcome to Midwestern Missionary Mahem! Today in the Saintly Smackdown Henry Whipple takes on Jackson Kemper. Two outward-looking nineteenth century American bishops who helped shape the future of the Episcopal Church.
Yesterday, Rita trounced Zita (or was it the other way around?) No, we're pretty sure it was Rita over Zita 79% to 21%. Actually, upon further review, it was Zita over Rita!
Vote now!
Sometimes saints get paired against one another simply because their names rhyme and we like the sound of them together. Like Rita and Zita. These two saints also have
this in common: they were both faithful Italian women who lived out their lives in the Middle Ages. Also, their names both rhyme with pita.
Yesterday, Ambrose of Milan flew past William Byrd 65% to 35% to advance to the Saintly Sixteen.
And, by the way, if you watched Jeopardy! last night, you may have noticed that one of the contestants was Lent Madness Celebrity Blogger David Sibley. Congrats to David on a big win in the Tournament of Champions! We're all very proud of you. And hope you get some saint questions in the next round.
Vote now!
Welcome to the proverbial Bird Cage as Ambrose of Milan takes on William Byrd in the Battle of the Birds. Who will emerge as Big Bird? That's up to you as you choose between a 4th century bishop and 16th century composer.
Yesterday, Adomnan of Iona easily slid past Joseph Vaz 68% to 32% to advance to the Saintly Sixteen.
Also, yesterday, Tim and Scott previewed the coming week's battles in yet another epic (they're all epic, if you haven't caught on by now) edition of Monday Madness.
Vote now!
