Today in saintly action, Polycarp faces Andrew the Fisherman, as a second century martyred bishop takes on a martyred apostle. Something fishy is definitely going on here...

Yesterday, Albert Schweitzer defeated Henry Mühlenberg 75% to 25%. Which, although it's tough news for Henry, means we're all collectively spared from trying to figure out how to type an umlaut. Which may remind longtime Lent Madness participants of Franz Jägerstätter, who nearly won the Golden Halo in 2017 before he and his two umlauts succumbed to Florence Nightingale.

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Welcome to the Battle of the Lutheran Legends as Henry Mühlenberg faces Albert Schweitzer. Both born in Germany, one in the 18th century, the other in the 19th. Both Lutherans. Both with fascinating vocational and creative paths. But only one will advance to the Saintly Sixteen.

Yesterday, Canaire prevailed over Barbara 54% to 46% to make it to the next round.

And if you missed yesterday's edition of Monday Madness...for shame! However, you can still watch it here.

Time to vote!

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Welcome to the FIRST FULL WEEK of Lent Madness XV! Today Canaire takes on Barbara as two strong and beloved women, with some surrounding legends, square off for a shot at the Saintly Sixteen. As Barbara is the patron saint of miners, you could call this matchup Canaire in a Coal Mine. But that would just be silly.

On Saturday, Kassia trounced Casimir 89% to 11% in the first major rout of 2023. 

Time to vote!

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Welcome to the ONE AND ONLY weekend matchup of Lent Madness as Kassia takes on Casimir. Every other battle will take place on the weekdays of Lent - straight through until Spy Wednesday during Holy Week.

Yesterday, Hyacinth came up smelling like roses as he roundly defeated Rose of Lima 74% to 26% to advance to the Saintly Sixteen.

While some of the early struggles people had with voting have abated, please check out our (hopefully) helpful Voter Information Guide.

We'll see you bright and early on Monday morning as Canaire takes on Barbara. Time to vote!

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Today in the Saintly smackdown it's the Flower Follies as Hyacinth faces Rose of Lima. Every member of the Flower Guild should cast a vote! And maybe be a little judgy about their choice?

Yesterday, on Opening Day, Thomas the Apostle defeated Thomas Cranmer 56% to 44% with nearly 5,700 votes cast, to become the first saint to advance to the Saintly Sixteen.

It wasn't the smoothest start to our little bracket competition as so many people tried to vote early in the day that the server crashed. A few times. But we're up and running and looking forward to another full season of saintly thrills and spills. Please note that you cannot vote from the email we send out, you can only vote directly from the website. All of the extra steps involved are to protect the Lent Madness Global Public from voter fraud (yes, it's a thing). Thank you for your patience when you have trouble voting. You were patient, right?! it's supposedly a virtue.

Don't forget that tomorrow is the ONLY WEEKEND VOTE of Lent Madness as Kassia takes on Casmir.

Now go exercise your right to vote!

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Welcome to the opening matchup of Lent Madness XV! If you’re a veteran Lent Madness participant, welcome back! If you're joining us for the first time, we’re delighted you’re along for this wild, saintly ride! And if you're just penitential-curious, check out the About Lent Madness tab on the website to find out what all the fuss is about.

To experience the fullness of Lent Madness, the Supreme Executive Committee (the somewhat benevolent dictatorship that runs this whole enterprise) encourages you
to do a couple 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. We highly recommend doing this. Finally, you can fill out a bracket online and daily see how you stack up against those who take their Lenten bracketology seriously (keep scrolling and you'll encounter the 2024 Matchup Calendar to determine when your favorite saint will be doing battle). Oh, and if you've ordered a bracket poster, and your handwriting's lousy, you can download these nifty Lent Madness Bracket Stickers and impress your friends with your beautiful penmanship.

But mostly, we encourage you to read about the 32 saints participating in this year’s edition of Lent Madness (download the FREE Digital Saintly Scorecard), 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.

To celebrate the 15th year of Lent Madness, all 16 first round matchups are themed battles. Some will be obvious, some less so. For instance, today it's the Thomas Throwdown as Thomas Cranmer faces Thomas the Apostle.

But enough of this idle chatter. It's time to cast your very first vote of Lent Madness 2024! We’re glad you’re all here. Now get to it!

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Congratulations! You have nearly made it to the end of the Round of 32. One spot remains up for grabs in the Saintly Sixteen. Will it belong to Martin de Porres? Or will Maximus the Confessor stake his claim? That's up to you and your single vote.

Yesterday, whether or not you consider it poetic justice, John Donne made it past Juan Diego to advance to the next round.

Tomorrow begins the Saintly Sixteen as Augustine squares off against Joanna the Myrrhbearer. But that's for another day. Go vote!

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In the penultimate matchup of the Round of 32, Juan Diego faces off against John Donne. Yes, one of these saints will be Juan and Donne (or 'one and done,' if you prefer).

Yesterday, Jonathan Daniels swept past Rutilio Grande 79% to 21% to make the Saintly Sixteen, where he'll face Josephine Bakhita.

Obviously you watched Monday Madness yesterday. But if you insist on watching it again, you can watch it here. Tim and Scott thank you.

Time to vote!

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Welcome back for another full week of Lent Madness action! We kick things off with the long-anticipated matchup between Jonathan Daniels and Rutilio Grande. Two martyrs who embraced the prophetic call as followers of Jesus amid turbulent times in the United States and El Salvador.

On Friday, Brendan of Clonfert advanced to the Saintly Sixteen by defeating David of Wales 58% to 42%

Vote now!

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Hey, it's the last battle of the week! How'd that happen? We're not sure. But we do know that today it's Brendan of Clonfert vs. David of Wales. Two saints deeply rooted in the monastic tradition and beloved in their home countries. But only one will advance to face Blandina in the Saintly Sixteen.

Yesterday, Leoba made it past Cuthmann of Steyning 58% to 42% to advance to the Saintly Sixteen.

I know you miss us already but, fear not, we'll be back first thing on Monday morning as Jonathan Daniels faces Rutilio Grande.

Now go cast your final vote of the week!

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