Dear friends in Christ: We welcome back Margaret Ellsworth, Forward Movement’s Marketing Coordinator, as our guest author this week.
Tomorrow, the Episcopal Church remembers the holy life of Absalom Jones. He may not be one of the most familiar saints in our church, but if you follow Lent Madness, you’ll likely remember his name. A few years ago, Absalom Jones emerged victorious at the top of the bracket as the winner of the 2021 Golden Halo.
For those who aren’t familiar with it, here’s how Scott described this online devotion last year: “Lent Madness is a mostly silly game in which 32 saints go up against each other as voters decide who wins the Golden Halo. Among other things, voters end up learning about each of these many saints as they make their choices of who to support. When we see how God has worked in the lives of so many different kinds of people, we begin to see that God could work in our lives, too.”
This week’s saint, Absalom Jones, is one of those saints that we learned about together during Lent Madness 2021. If you open up this year’s Lent Madness Saintly Scorecard, you can read his brief bio as one of the Golden Halo winners: “Absalom Jones and his fervent hope that the Body of Christ would manifest the diversity of God’s people continues to inspire and educate people more than 200 years after his ministry. Ordained a priest in 1802, Jones was the first African-American priest in the Episcopal Church and is remembered on the feast day of February 13 for his commitment to opening the doors of the church to all people.”
Miriam Willard McKinney, one of our enthusiastic Celebrity Bloggers, helped illuminate Absalom Jones for us in her posts on the Lent Madness blog. Miriam shared about his life and also a little bit about him in his own words. She even found art in Absalom’s likeness—from portraits to peg-dolls—in the “Saintly Kitsch” round of the competition.
As Absalom advanced through the bracket, Miriam concluded her posts by asking friends, family, and colleagues: “What does Absalom Jones have to do with you?” The answers she got reflect the scope of Absalom’s life and witness—from his sacrificial acts of service to his community during a devastating epidemic, to his faithfulness to God despite the failings of the Church.
Miriam sums all these answers up for us: “Absalom Jones shows us what it looks like to be a Christian, a community organizer, a faith leader, and a friend. That’s what Absalom Jones has to do with you: he shows you how to follow Jesus, no matter what.”
This is why we do Lent Madness, as silly as it may seem: to learn about our fellow followers of Jesus, across space and time, and take inspiration from their example. I encourage you to follow Lent Madness this year if you haven’t already (sign up for email updates here!) and to pray with us to be formed in courage and love just like Absalom Jones:
Set us free, heavenly Father, from every bond of prejudice and fear; that, honoring the steadfast courage of your servant Absalom Jones, we may show forth in our lives the reconciling love and true freedom of the children of God, which you have given us in your Son our Savior Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Margaret Ellsworth
Marketing Coordinator
More from our ministry:
Color through Lent and Easter with our seasonal calendars
To inspire you in following Jesus this Lent: The Disciple’s Way
Get your Lent Madness merch at the Lentorium
Learn more about the saints with this FREE downloadable curriculum