“Ascension App” rose higher than apps from Disney+, LinkedIn, and Zoom at launch; includes #1 Religion Podcast “The Bible in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)”
By the end of its launch day on June 26, 2023, the Ascension App was the #1 Bible app in the App Store, and #46 in all app categories, ahead of apps from Disney+, LinkedIn, and Zoom.
This is the 4th time that the Pennsylvania-based Catholic company’s releases have topped the Apple charts.
Its wildly popular Bible in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)™ and Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz) podcasts hit #1 on the Apple podcast charts in all categories in 2021, 2022, and 2023, and The Bible in a Year has been the #1 global podcast in Religion and Spirituality since its 2021 launch (source: Chartable).
The free-to-download new Ascension App features:
- The full text of the Great Adventure Catholic Bible
- The full text of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Ascension Edition
- The Bible in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz) podcast and episode transcripts
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz) podcast and episode transcripts
- Over 1,000 commonly asked Catholic Bible questions answered by Fr. Mike Schmitz, Jeff Cavins, and other Catholic authors
- Interactive features that track listener progress on the podcast reading plans, offer space for notes, and more
In a video announcement for the app, Fr. Mike Schmitz told his podcast audiences that “if learning about the Bible and the Catechism is important to you, then this app will change your life.” In an Instagram post on launch day, Jeff Cavins shared that “every single screen has been lovingly designed to create the most exceptional experience.”
According to app development manager Josh Rudegeair, Ascension consulted with over 1,300 devoted Bible in a Year listeners during the app’s design process. These listeners offered critical feedback to help the Ascension App become a powerful Catholic Bible study tool.
“Ascension has been helping Catholics read and understand the Bible for 25 years,” comments Rudegeair. “This app is based around the idea of putting everything Ascension knows about the Bible right in one place, along with the Biblical text itself. The combination of Fr. Mike’s podcasts, Jeff Cavins’ Bible Timeline learning system, and the work of dozens of other Catholic experts all in one place is really something special.”
Ascension will add new features to the app on a rolling basis, with the addition of audio Bible studies and an interactive version of Jeff Cavins’ famous “Bible Timeline” already under development.
The Ascension App is available for iOS and Android:
About Ascension
Ascension is a multimedia network and the leader in Catholic faith formation and digital content. Over the past 25 years, Ascension has helped nurture the faith of more than 10 million Catholics through award-winning books, the chart-topping Bible in a Year and Catechism in a Year podcasts, more than 50 unique faith formation programs, and Ascension Presents, which hosts the largest Catholic YouTube channel in English.
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Media Contact
For comments or interviews with app development manager Josh Rudegeair, please contact Lauren Joyce at (484) 876-1400 or [email protected].
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Religion News Service or Religion News Foundation.
