Today's Lent Madness matchup feels a little one-sided to be honest. In one corner, we have Casimir, the national saint of Poland and Lithuania, whose biography doesn't exactly make one want to run to the voting both and mark your ballot for him. Other than being learned, pious, and possibly having three hands (which would make him the patron saint of multitaskers), Casimir's life could be summed up by the motto "Die Young, Stay Holy". Mind you, there is a Polish-Canadian Roman Catholic parish named after him, so I wouldn't want to denigrate him, because, well, have you met Poles?
In the other corner, we have St Kassia, a strong-willed and learned nun who also appears as a character in the TV series, The Vikings, where her behaviour is, well, somewhat less than saintly..
Kassia's music is still sung in the liturgy of the Orthodox church, and she was a prolific composer, poet, and theoligian, not unafraid to stand up to the Emperor of Byzantium. The Emperor was an "iconoclast", an opponent of religious imagery called icons, Kassia was willing to be beaten for her opposition to the Emperor, saying that "I hate silence when iut is time to speak", which is a good motto for anyone of integrity, really. The next time you're in All Saints and see the icons by the votive candles in the east transept, say a prayer of thanks to Kassia.
My predictions thus far have been rubbish, but I'm willing to say that Kassia will beat Casimir in a landslide.
Vote here.
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