What's an election without a bit of controversy? The Supreme Executive Committee of the Province of Lent Madness (aka Tim and Scott) has discovered that a few among us have been abusing the system by casting more than a handful of votes. Okay, it was Scott. He of the "I-used-to-work-for-IBM-before-I-became-a-priest" pedigree. Plus, he's naturally distrustful of humanity.

Rest assured this has not affected the final outcome of any of the match-ups. But it has caused us to consider a loose policy on the issue. Basically, in order to protect the integrity of Lent Madness we're asking you to vote once. If you can't restrain your passion and have access to an extra computer or mobile device, we can overlook your enthusiasm. But, unless you're Bill Gates (saint or devil depending on your perspective), you likely don't have 17 computers.

I'll take some responsibility for this phenomenon because at one point I wrote a throw away line (I'm full of these) on our Facebook page that "All's fair in love and Lent Madness." Of course I also wrote on the "About Lent Madness" page: "We hope you’ll participate fully this Lent and vote with reckless abandon! (Once — this isn’t Chicago)." To which Diocese of Chicago priest and blogger Cynthia Hallas responded "Actually, Tim, for some of us this is Chicago." Fair enough.

So what happens if you abuse the system? Several people have had their access to the Lent Madness site revoked. This is obviously not what we want to do. Since this is a season of forgiveness, we have heard the e-mail pleas of those repenting of their actions and promising amendment of life and have reinstated them.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, referring to the NFL logo, speaks often about "protecting the shield." We are here to "Protect the Halo." Plus we're against concussions.

We hope you're enjoying Lent Madness thus far and we absolutely encourage partisanship. Rather than multiple votes, however, we encourage outlandish campaigning and even mud slinging ("All's fair," remember). And perhaps next year we'll include St. (Hanging) Chad of Lichfield.

 

 

Lent Madness continues this morning with an intriguing (aren't they all?) match-up between Ephrem of Edessa and Thomas Cranmer. Will the "Harp of the Holy Spirit" be played by the author of the first Book of Common Prayer? Only you and the next 24 hours will decide.

In recent action, David Oakerhater bested Martin of Porres by a nose. Or, technically speaking, it was by the hair of a nostril -- with over 2,100 votes cast, David won by a mere 15 votes. If you didn't think your vote counted, you were wrong!

Nicknamed ‘the harp of the Holy Spirit,’ Ephrem (306-373) was a renowned Syrian teacher, poet, orator and defender of the faith.

Ephrem was born in Nisibis, which is the modern Turkish town of Nusaybin, on the border with Syria. At 18 he was baptized by the Bishop of Nisibis and accompanied him to the famous Council of Nicea in 325.

Ephrem carved out a career as a teacher where he founded the School of Nisibis, which later became a center of learning of the Syriac Orthodox Church. It was here that Ephrem carved out his reputation as a writer, credited by one historian as having authored 3 million lines, such as this: “No one has seen or shall see the things which you have seen. The Lord himself has become the altar, priest, and bread, and the chalice of salvation. He alone suffices for all, yet none suffices for him. He is Altar and Lamb, victim and sacrifice, priest as well as food.”

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In a very close race, David Oakerhater has just defeated Martin of Porres in the first round of Lent Madness. Oakerhater will go on to face the winner of Thomas vs. Enmegahbowh in the second round.

There is no more voting today. The polls open at 8 a.m. Eastern Standard Time on Monday with Ephrem of Edessa facing Thomas Cranmer.

Some people (Penny Nash among them) have asked me whether they get a sticker for voting in Lent Madness. Evidently this is customary at some polling places around the country. Unfortunately here at Lent Madness we don't have fancy stickers, just mugs and books.

However if you really want a sticker with a cross on it, I do have a suggestion: go give blood. Your sticker will inevitably bear a red cross but that's rather holy looking, I'd say. Plus, percentage-wise, give blood and you'll have an excellent chance to score some Cheez-Its.

Speaking of giving blood, Florence Nightingale actually made it into last year's Lent Madness and defeated St. David before succumbing to Clare of Assisi in a very close Saintly Sixteen battle. If any of you saintologists are into Lent Madness nostalgia, you can read about it here.

But seriously, we're delighted that so many of you have been voting -- we're averaging about 2,000 votes per contest so far -- and commenting. Keep it up! The comments alone are worth reading through. We love hearing why people are motivated to pull the lever (proverbially) for a particular candidate or what other tidbits they may know about the saints involved. Plus, we encourage trash talking.

Keep up the voting and thanks for helping make the first few days of Lent Madness so much fun!

Today's match-up features two men who broke down barriers of race and bigotry in their own days -- good luck choosing sides. It is also the only battle that will take place on a Saturday -- we'll be sticking strictly to Mondays through Fridays from here on out. After five days of nail-biting drama, it's only fair to offer a sabbath to all those afflicted with Lent Madness fever.

In yesterday's action, Jerome easily bounced John Patteson out of Lent Madness 2012. Following today's "Lentsanity," Lent Madness will resume bright and early on Monday morning with Ephrem of Edessa vs. Thomas Cranmer. Thanks to all who have participated thus far -- we've had record numbers of voters in the early going. Keep spreading the word! It's never too late to jump into the game (though God has a special place in the Kingdom for those who attain perfect voting attendance -- and we offer members of this exclusive club a special tattoo).

David Pendleton Oakerhater (1847-1931), was a Cheyenne from Oklahoma whose last name is translated as Sun Dancer or Making Medicine and spelled Okuh hatuh. He fought in the Red River War of 1874-75. After hostilities ceased, he and some 70 other warriors were sent to Fort Marion in St. Augustine, Florida. Conditions were initially very poor, but one officer, Henry Pratt, worked to change that and to improve the lives of the prisoners generally, giving them better living conditions, education, art materials, and responsibility for guarding the fort. Okuh hatuh soon became sergeant of the guard, as well as selling his art and teaching visitors archery.

Deaconess Mary Douglass Burnham made arrangements to sponsor Okuh hatuh, among others, for continuing education in upstate New York. With financial support from Alice Key Pendleton, the wife of an Ohio Senator, Okuh hatuh came to St. Paul’s Church in Paris Hill, New York, where he was baptized, taking the Biblical name David and the name of his sponsor as well as Anglicizing his own to Oakerhater.

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Today's matchup is a battle between two learned gentlemen separated by 14 centuries. While both were great linguists, one sat around translating Scripture and became a hermit (Jerome) while the other went to New Zealand to become a bishop and martyr (Patteson). So, would you rather be a hermit or a martyr? Or a martyred hermit for that matter?

In recent action, Joan of Arc trounced Lancelot Andrewes (62% to 38%). Check out the updated bracket.

Jerome (c.347-420) was the most famous biblical scholar of ancient Christianity. The Latin version of the Bible known as the Vulgate (from the Latin vulgata, meaning “common”), translated from the original languages of Hebrew and Greek, was mostly the fruit of his work. It brought to an end the great differences between various Latin biblical texts that were circulating in the late 4th century. His writings also included biblical commentaries, which offered a variety of linguistic and topographical information to interpret the scriptures; attacks against the heresies of Arianism, Pelagianism, and Origenism; and letters that advocated extreme asceticism.

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Yesterday, Ashes to Go was all the rage. But today that's all dust. Instead, the world has moved on. New life. Time for a new Lenten mission to take to the streets. So naturally, today we inaugurated the first-ever Brackets to Go in Cincinnati.

Yours truly bravely donned cassock, surplice, and tippet (without all that seal foppery) and headed out of doors. I avoided wearing my beloved Canterbury Cap, because I didn't want to be construed as endorsing Lancelot Andrewes in today's matchup.

It was a profoundly sacred experience as people said, "Thank you! I am so grateful I didn't have to turn on my printer in order to get a bracket" and "Finally, I'll know who is the victor of Tarsus, Paul or Theodore." Still others were heard to say, "Hey, some of these clowns are only in Holy Women, Holy Men!" Perhaps the most amazing comment came from a teary-eyed recipient, "I cannot wait for saintly kitsch, especially if Evelyn Underhill is still in the running."

Yes, friends, it was gratifying to take Lent Madness to the streets -- to get outside the computer screen and iPhone. Just can't figure out why there were no television networks there to film my holy work.

Well, friends, after all the hype and all the anticipation and all the pageantry of the opening ceremonies (oh, did you miss that? Madonna sang "40 Days and 40 Nights"), Lent Madness 2012 is now upon us. Our first match-up is between a learned bishop and a young peasant girl born nearly 150 years apart. Sounding incongruous? Welcome to the beauty, intrigue, and mystery of the Lent Madness bracket.

The fate of these two saints is now in your hands with the winner destined to take on the victor of John Huss vs. Mary Magdalene in the Round of the Saintly Sixteen. But that's getting way ahead of ourselves. Today, your task is to vote wisely and encourage everyone you know to get in the Lent Madness game.

Lancelot Andrewes (1555 - 1626), Bishop of Chichester, Ely, and later Winchester, is perhaps best known as the lead translator of the Old Testament books Genesis through 2Kings in the Authorized Version of the Bible (also known as the King James Bible because it was commissioned by King James I in 1604). An exceptionally learned man who mastered fifteen modern European languages in addition to six ancient ones, Andrewes was also a celebrated preacher who enjoyed the privilege of preaching Christmas (and other) sermons before Queen Elizabeth I and later King James I. At the same time, Andrewes was known to spend several hours a day in prayer. More than twenty years after his death, his private devotions - a collection of Scripture, thoughts and prayers written in Greek and Hebrew - were finally translated and published, and they are still in print.

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By now you have surely discovered the Lent Madness Channel with our weekly webcasts of Monday Madness. Well, friends, there is good news. The book that goes behind the movie is now available. It's only $6.99 for Kindle or Nook (ebook only!). Calendar of Saints: Lent Madness 2012 Edition is the ultimate guidebook for Lent Madness and devotional handbook for the saints of the Episcopal Church.

Back in 1972 (before Holy Women, Holy Men was a glimmer in anyone's eye), Canon David Veal wrote a book for Forward Movement called Saints Galore! It was popular. So popular that it was reprinted and updated a bunch of times, most recently in 2004. Canon Veal write brief devotional essays about each saint in the liturgical calendar of the Episcopal Church. These essays were intended to convey something of God's grace at work in the saints and to inspire us with the idea that God might work in our lives too.

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At Ash Wednesday liturgies throughout the world, Christians will be invited by their parish clergy into the observance of a holy Lent. Here at Lent Madness we pray that everyone will have their souls enlivened during this transformative season of the Church year. Of course, we believe that your soul will be all the more enlivened by your participation in Lent Madness.

Therefore we have written an invitation to be read at all "Ash Thursday" liturgies to make sure everyone engaging in Lent Madness does so with the appropriate attitude of the heart. Although approval of this invitation by the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music is pending, it has been fully authorized for trial use by the Supreme Executive Committee of Lent Madness (ie. Scott and Tim). Nonetheless, please don't share this with their respective bishops as they will deny any knowledge of said invitation.

Invitation to the Observance of a Holy Lent Madness

Dear People of God: The first Christians observed with great devotion the days of our Lord's passion and resurrection, and it became the custom of the Church to prepare for them by a season of penitence, fasting, and Lent Madness. This season of Lent provided a time in which converts to the faith were prepared for Holy Baptism and taught to vote for their favorite saints by logging onto www.lentmadness.org. It was also a time when those who, because of notorious sins in refusing to engage in Lent Madness, had been separated from the body of the faithful were reconciled by penitence and forgiveness, and restored to the fellowship of the Church – but only after proving their worth by purchasing a Lent Madness mug. Thereby, the whole congregation was put in mind of the message of pardon and absolution set forth in the Gospel of our Savior, and of the need which all Christians continually have to renew their repentance and faith by participating in Lent Madness.

I invite you, therefore, in the name of the Church, the Supreme Executive Committee, and our “celebrity bloggers,” to the observance of a holy Lent Madness, by self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, voting in a timely fashion, and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God's holy Lent Madness. And, to make a right beginning of repentance, and as a mark of our mortal nature, let us now kneel before the Lord and our computer, only one of which is our maker and redeemer.