Ascension | Bible & Catechism

Ascension is the official app from Ascension Publishing Group — the people behind Fr. Mike Schmitz's Bible in a Year and Catechism in a Year podcasts. It packages both into one Catholic study app.

Bible in a Year walks you through the entire Bible in 365 days with a short reading and Fr. Mike's commentary each day. Catechism in a Year does the same for the Catechism of the Catholic Church. You can read along with the text or listen to Fr. Mike read it — most people listen. There is also a personal reading plan tracker, the full Scripture text, the full Catechism, and search across both. The whole thing is built around Jeff Cavins' Great Adventure Bible Timeline, which colour-codes the books of the Bible by historical period.

Fr. Mike's delivery is the reason this app works. He reads with conviction, comments without lecturing, and prays at the start and end of each episode. After a year you will have heard the Bible cover to cover with a Catholic priest walking you through it. The Great Adventure Timeline framework is genuinely useful — it gives you a mental map of where the books fit together. The Catechism in a Year does the same for the Church's teaching.

An obvious fit for Catholics who want to read the Bible but have never made it past Leviticus, RCIA candidates and confirmands, anyone preparing to teach a Bible study, parents wanting to model daily Scripture, or commuters who like a long-form podcast that goes somewhere. Catechism in a Year suits anyone wanting to know what the Church actually teaches, in order.

It is not a Liturgy of the Hours app, not a Mass-readings app, and the daily commitment is real — about twenty minutes a day. If you fall off the pace it is easy to catch up, but easy to abandon too. Make the time before you start.

Free with in-app purchases for premium reading plans and content. By Ascension Publishing Group, LLC. Available on the App Store: Ascension. If you only do one year-long Catholic project, do this one.