The Supreme Executive Committee of Lent Madness is pleased to announce that Lent 2018 will go on as previously scheduled. For the first time
since Jesus himself entered the wilderness, this was not a foregone conclusion. If Lent Madness did not receive the required 20,000 likes on its Facebook page, a Lent shutdown would have gone into effect, sending the Lenten-Industrial Complex into meltdown mode and dashing the penitential hopes of billions of faithful Christians.
Thanks to the surge in Facebook likes over the past two weeks — over 2,000 — Lent will proceed as usual. While this news was greeted with euphoria all over the globe, not everyone was overjoyed with the news. “Rats! Now I actually have to write an Ash Wednesday sermon,” one priest stated on condition of anonymity. And reports have surfaced that the Hershey Corporation actively sought to suppress Lent by hacking into the Lent Madness website.
In the end, the global Lent Madness public voted with their clicking fingers and saved Lent. This display of penitential heroism will go down in the annals of ecclesiastical history. A you listen to The Great Litany this weekend, wondering if it will ever end, know that there are specific people to thank. The Likers of Lent Madness may well end up on some future bracket for having set aside selfish ambition and clicked with patience the Facebook page that was set before them. Well done, good and faithful clickers. You have indeed saved Lent.
Alleluia!
Adelaide, while I share your joy that we will have Lent after all, I’m not sure that “Alleluia” is the theologically appropriate way to expess such joy over the restoration of a penitential season. Perhaps an upbeat “Mea Culpa” would be in order.
I wish I could “like” this reply.
Thank you Debra! I’ll count this as my first “like”.
Actually, in keeping with Lutheran traditions during Lent — no alleluias until Easter Sunday!
Whew! Was it ok that I voted 3 times? I didn’t want to overdo but wanted to be sure that Lent would continue.
You helped out by voting for those of us who how would have but for the fact that we aren’t on Facebook. Good work!
HURRAH for Lent and Lent Maddness! May it reign forever!
Hershey is innocent in regard to such vile rumors. As a matter of fact, it is well known for its philanthropy.
HURRAH for Lent and Lent Madness! May it reign forever!
Have one poster up in the Sanctuary and one in the Sunday School Wing at St Alban’s, Edmonds, WA!! And several people came up to me to find out about how to play!
Love the poster!!!
Karen, that is so neat that your church is participating with flow chart and all!! I’m just up the street from St. Alban’s (212th) and it is so much fun to find a Lent Madness friend!! Lenten blessings to all at St. Alban’s! (Is “Lenten Blessings” an oxymoron?? Just sayin’….)
Hi Ruth Anne,
Did you know that 7 UCC clergywomen are doing Lent Madness in our conference?
Gail Crouch
ALLELUIA (probably the last time I’ll say it until Easter”. I was so worried, but did not cheat by hitting “like” more than once.
I seem to remember that last year one of the Lenten Psalms included at least one Allelluia!
Cheers will be heard from the sanctuary of St. Stephens Church in Olean, NY when they are greeted with this news and my spectacular, yet penitential Ash Wednesday Sermon on Wednesday. We have our posters up in our Chruch and yesterday at our Sunday Worship Service we handed out Saintly Scorcards to the “Sunday Surprise” winners. There was such excitement in the Church, it was as if a transfiguration had occurred. We even had a Lutheran, who saw our poster during a Saturday event at our Church convert to a “Lent Madness” follower. Can Lent get any better than this, I think not!!
This is ridiculous! Get real and stop this silly stuff, playing off our political disfunction. I do this to read about the saints, not this junk. And I don’t do Facebook. Libby
If we can’t laugh about our “political disfunction [sic]” then we will surely cry!
Hooray!
YAY! I put up the bracket poster in Information Hall at St Thomas, Huntsville, AL and gave out copies of the downloadable brackets at Christian Formation yesterday. Everyone there is excited to participate this year.
A time without “Lent Madness”? Perish the thought!
Haha!
Is it one vote per person? Or one vote per device? Also, does Me, Myself, and I count as one or as three? I always seem to have a hard time with that!
Philippians 3:13-14 — Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
May the Best Saint win as we go forward?
Great news, the thought of Lent being canceled this year just doesn’t bear thinking about.
I’m a member of the Reformed Church and while I think maybe you folks have gone a little overboard with your saints Lent Madness is such a great idea. I’ve let our congregation know about it through our church newsletter and have talked about it with some folks at work too.
Praise be!
Whew. That was a close one.?
I left work early today, as I wasn’t feeling good. Having read this post after my nap, I feel so much better! It wasn’t a virus, just the fear that Lent would be cancelled. Thank you for my miraculous recovery!
I didn’t doubt for a minute
Glad it’s a go!!!
“Though this be madness, yet there is method in’t.:” “Hamlet” II.ii.206-7
Just want to mention that the United States Postal Service is issuing a Mr. Rogers stamp this coming March.
Can Lent Madness be far behind?
Allelluia! Allelluia! Had to get a few of those in before Lent. Looking forward to the madness!
I look forward to the Madness, and am glad it’s a go
Next year, it might be fun to not only have friendly competitions between saints, but also between Episcopal congregations: which congregation will have the most # of parishioners voting in Lent Madness?
Is it possible to have a drop down menu of Episcopal congregations, and allow Lent Madness participants to not only vote for their favorite saint, but indicate their congregation as well?
Or they could name their congregational affiliation in their comments. (Not all voters are Episcopalian – yet.)