Hallow vs the Ascension App: Which One for Bible in a Year?

You decided to do Fr. Mike Schmitz's Bible in a Year. Maybe a friend at your parish is starting it, or maybe you are picking it back up after a pause. You search for it, and it shows up in two places: Hallow and the Ascension app. Both are Catholic, both carry Fr. Mike, and both have a subscription button.

So which one do you need? Here is a fair answer, taken only from each app's own App Store listing and official pages, with no prices, plus one question most comparisons skip: do you want to listen to the Bible this year, or read it?

Short answer: same podcast, two different apps

Bible in a Year is one show. It launched on January 1, 2021, hosted by Fr. Mike Schmitz and produced by Ascension, a Catholic publisher. A University of St. Thomas news feature reported that within 48 hours of launch it reached the top of the Apple Podcasts chart, and that its 365 episodes cover every verse of the Bible. A Saint John's University feature adds that the reading plan was inspired by The Great Adventure Bible Timeline, the approach to salvation history developed by Catholic Bible scholar Jeff Cavins.

The confusion starts because the show lives in more than one place. Hallow announced a partnership with Ascension Press to carry the podcast, which its launch post calls "first-of-its-kind." Ascension then built its own app. On its help center, Ascension answers the question directly: Hallow does carry its podcasts, but Hallow is "a separate app and not owned or hosted by Ascension."

One more thing worth knowing before you choose: you do not need either app to listen. The St. Thomas feature notes the podcast is on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other podcast platforms, as well as Hallow.

What each app is for, in its own words

The fairest way to compare two apps is to let each one describe itself. Ascension's help center draws the line plainly: Hallow "has built itself to be an incredibly helpful prayer app, but it is not a Bible app," while Ascension's app "will be more of a Bible app (not a prayer app)," so it sees the two as "complementary to each other." That article was written before Ascension's app launched, which is why it speaks in the future tense. Read it as a statement about focus, not a feature list: Hallow's own release notes now describe a Bible tab with notes, highlights and bookmarks.

The Ascension app

The Ascension App Store listing says the app is designed to help Catholics read and understand the Bible. It carries the full text of the Great Adventure Catholic Bible, audio recordings from Fr. Mike, the Bible Timeline learning system, and the "In a Year" podcasts with extras such as transcripts and linked Bible references. It also lists daily Mass readings with reflections, the Rosary with recorded voices, and more than 80 study plans. Its help center adds that you can call its support team during business hours.

Hallow

The Hallow App Store listing opens with "Hallow is a Christian prayer app that offers audio-guided meditation sessions." It describes a library of more than 10,000 sessions: daily prayers including Lectio Divina on the daily readings, the Rosary and the Divine Mercy Chaplet, seasonal challenges, homilies from Fr. Mike, and Bible stories for sleep. Bible in a Year sits inside that wider prayer library. The listing names English and six more languages; Ascension's lists English.

Side by side: what is free, what needs a subscription, what you get

Every cell for Hallow and Ascension below comes from that app's own listing or official page. Neither listing's prices are included here, because they change and the App Store shows the current figure. The third column is ours, labelled as ours.

The short version: if what you want is the podcast and the text that goes with it, the publisher's own app gives you the most for free. If you want the podcast inside a larger daily prayer routine, Hallow is built for that.

Listening vs reading: two ways through the Bible in a year

Here is the question underneath "Hallow or Ascension?" Both apps help you listen. Listening is a very old way to receive Scripture. Paul writes that "faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ" (Romans 10:17, NABRE). Since 2021, Fr. Mike's voice has carried a great many Catholics through Scripture, and that deserves saying plainly.

But listening and reading are different habits, and they cost different amounts of time. Hallow's announcement describes each episode as 20 to 25 minutes: Fr. Mike reads a passage, shares a brief reflection, and guides you into a Lectio Divina meditation. That is guided formation, not only reading. It is not a fast way through the text, and it is not meant to be.

Reading the text yourself is a smaller block of time. The Catholic canon runs to 828,590 words. Spread across 365 days, that is 2,270 words a day, which at a normal reading pace of 220 words a minute is about 10.3 minutes. We worked through how long it takes to read the Bible in a year for every tradition, and the Catholic figure runs longer than the Protestant one because the canons differ; here is what is actually different between the canons.

Those two numbers are not a contest. The podcast includes commentary and prayer; the reading time is Scripture alone. The point is that they fit into different mornings. If you have a drive or a walk, twenty-five minutes of listening may slot right in. If your one quiet window is ten minutes with coffee before the house wakes up, the episode can keep sliding to later, and later can turn into a stack of unplayed days.

Which one should you pick? (and a third option)

No app is the right answer for everyone. Pick by the situation you are actually in.

• Pick the Ascension app if you want Bible in a Year straight from the people who make it, with transcripts, linked references and the Great Adventure Bible text in one place. Its listing puts the Bible, the Catechism, daily Mass readings and most of its podcasts in the free tier, and its help center offers phone support.
• Pick Hallow if you want the podcast as one part of a wider prayer life: the Rosary, Lectio Divina on the daily readings, the Divine Mercy Chaplet and seasonal challenges, in more than one language.
• Pick a plain podcast app if you only want the episodes. Apple Podcasts and Spotify both carry the show.
• Pick a reading plan if you want the words in front of you and a shorter daily block.

That last option is where we come in, so here it is stated fairly. BlessUp is not a podcast app and does not carry Bible in a Year. What it offers is the Catholic canon plan at about ten minutes a day, with NABRE pre-selected for Catholic readers, and 372 study lessons that each carry four commentary voices, one of them Catholic, so a passage is explained in your own tradition. Many readers will happily use the podcast and a reading plan together: read in the morning, listen on the drive.

If you are restarting rather than starting, the app matters less than the plan for picking up again. Our guide to catching up on a Bible reading plan covers that without any guilt, and if you are waiting for a fresh start, here is how to make a January Bible in a Year start stick. For more on choosing faith apps with clear eyes, the faith and technology hub collects our comparisons, and the our FAQ explains how the reading gate works.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Ascension app the same as Hallow?

No. They are separate apps from separate companies. Ascension's help center says Hallow carries Ascension's podcasts but is not owned or hosted by Ascension. Ascension describes its own app as more of a Bible app and Hallow as a prayer app, and calls the two complementary.

Is Bible in a Year free on Hallow?

Hallow's post announcing the partnership says listening to Bible in a Year on Hallow is "totally free." Its App Store listing separately names daily prayers, including the Rosary, and the 9-day Intro Prayer Challenge as free, with the full app behind an optional subscription. Check the app for current terms.

Can I do Bible in a Year without a subscription?

Yes. The podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other podcast platforms. Ascension's App Store listing also says all users get the full Bible text, the Catechism, daily Mass readings, the Rosary and most Ascension podcasts for free.

How long is each Bible in a Year episode?

Hallow describes each daily episode as 20 to 25 minutes, with Fr. Mike reading a passage, sharing a short reflection and leading a Lectio Divina meditation. There are 365 episodes in all.

Can I read the Catholic Bible in a year instead of listening?

Yes. The Catholic canon is about 828,590 words. Spread over 365 days that is 2,270 words a day, or roughly 10.3 minutes at a reading pace of 220 words a minute. Any Catholic Bible and a day-by-day plan will get you there.