Catholic Prayers and Bible

Catholic Prayers and Bible is a free offline app that bundles three things together: a complete Catholic Bible, the Rosary prayers in order, and a small collection of devotional prayers. Everything works without a signal, which matters more than people realize.

The Bible included is the Catholic Public Domain Version — all 73 books, including the deuterocanonicals that Protestant Bibles leave out. You can search for any word, bookmark verses, highlight them, share them, copy and paste. There is a daily morning verse on the home screen. The Rosary section gives you the Apostles Creed, Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be, the optional Fatima Prayer, the five mysteries, and the closing Hail Holy Queen.

What I appreciate is how plain it is. There is no login, no account, no nagging notifications, no upsell screen. You open the app, you pray or you read. The CPDV is not the most beautiful English translation out there — the language is older and a little stiff — but it is a real Catholic Bible and it sits on your phone whether or not you have wifi.

This is a good fit for someone who wants a free, dependable Catholic Bible on their phone for travel, hospitals, planes, or any place the signal drops. It is also fine for a teenager or a new Catholic who needs the Rosary prayers spelled out without scrolling through ads.

It is not a study Bible. There are no footnotes, no cross-references, no commentary, no Catechism links. The translation is workable but dated. If you want a Catholic Bible with serious study helps, look at Verbum or YOUCAT Daily.

Free, by David Maraba. Available on the App Store: Catholic Prayers and Bible. A simple offline tool that does what it says.