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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Sometimes Lent Madness includes well-known saints, sometimes lesser known ones. Today may be the latter for many people as Cuthmann of Steyning faces Leoba for a shot at the Saintly Sixteen. Which among these near contemporaries with ties to England will advance? Well, that's up to you.

Yesterday, Chief Seattle sailed past Botulph 80% to 20%.

Time to vote!

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Happy Wednesday! Today in the Saintly Smackdown it's an East Coast vs. West Coast kind of day as Chief Seattle (namesake of that hip city in the Pacific Northwest goes up against St. Botulph (namesake of that tough town in Eastern Massachusetts we call Boston). Or, if you'd prefer, it's coffee vs. tea -- Starbucks vs. the Boston Tea Party. Whatever, it's sure to be an intriguing matchup.

In yesterday's saintly action, Josephine Bakhita ran away from Eric Lidell 57% to 43% to advance to the Saintly Sixteen.

Sip your coffee and/or tea and go vote!

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We're back for another exciting matchup as Josephine Bakhita takes on Eric Liddell. Who will run away with the victory? That's up to you!

Yesterday, in the tightest race of Lent Madness XIV to date (by far), Blandina squeezed past Simeon Bachos 51% to 49% to advance to the Saintly Sixteen. You see, your (single) vote does actually count!

Obviously you watched Monday Madness yesterday. But if you want to watch the rerun (we really should put these into syndication), you can watch it here.

Time to vote!

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Welcome back to another FULL WEEK of saintly thrills and spills! Lent Madness XIV continues as Simeon Bachos takes on Blandina. The one known in Scripture as the Ethiopian eunuch vs. a second century martyr.

In Friday's matchup, Bach triumphed over Harriet Monsell 58% to 42% to advance to the Saintly Sixteen against Richard Hooker.

By the way, if you ever want to see an updated bracket, you can simply click the Bracket tab and voila! Our long-time (long suffering?) Bracket Czar Adam Thomas updates in daily.

Now, go vote!

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