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CHICAGO (CNS) – Hallow, the world’s #1 Catholic prayer and meditation app, has launched a Spanish version of its app, Hallow Español, with a wide range of content exclusively for Hispanic Catholics.
The app, available in all Spanish-speaking countries and the United States, “aims to help Hispanic Catholics deepen their faith,” a press release said.
“As the percentage of all American Catholics who are Hispanic increases, with one-third – 33% – of all American Catholic adults identifying as Hispanic, the Catholic Church has become more focused on providing resources and programs that appeal to his Spanish-speaking parishioners,” it said.
“Technology has increasingly played a key role in reaching Hispanic Catholics,” the statement added. “But there hasn’t been a Catholic app that provides them – until now.”
“With over 1.7 million downloads, Hallow has become an essential resource for prayer and meditation in the English-speaking world,” Jaime Gil, Hallow’s team manager for Spanish content, said in a statement. “As we move forward in our vision of having millions of people praying every day, we are excited to make the same great content available in Spanish.”
A 14-day trial of Hallow Español is available. Information to register for the trial is available at www.hallow.com.
Those who have the English edition of the app can change the language to Spanish and all the Spanish prayers and meditations will appear.
“Spanish is not only spoken in 21 countries in the Americas, Spain and other parts of the world,” Gil said, “but it is also the second most spoken language in the United States. Hallow Español, we believe that God will continue to sanctify the lives of many millions of other people around the world.
Hallow Español’s original content is tailored specifically for Hispanic audiences and will be continually updated throughout the liturgical year.
For its official launch in December, this content included the Our Lady of Guadalupe novena, a Las Posadas community challenge, and special meditations for Día de los Reyes Magos (the Feast of Epiphany).
Hallow, which has received over 40,000 five-star reviews, is available on the Apple App Store, Google Play Store, and Amazon App Store.
Over the past year, Hallow has added numerous faith leaders to the app, including Auxiliary Bishop of Los Angeles Robert E. Barron, founder of the Word on Fire media ministry; Father Mike Schmitz, priest of the Diocese of Duluth, Minnesota, who is co-creator of the daily Bible in a Year podcast; Scott Hahn, founder and president of the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology in Steubenville, Ohio; Leah Darrow, Catholic wife and mother, author and podcaster; and Sister Miriam James Heidland, a member of the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity, who is a sought-after speaker at youth conferences.
Hallow also formed a new council of advisers, led by Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Indiana, who is the immediate past chairman of the Committee on Doctrine of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Hallow tries to be “an app that helps you disconnect from apps and technology,” according to its CEO and co-founder, Alex Jones.
It sounds like a contradiction, he admitted in a 2020 interview with Catholic News Service.
But while other religious apps have users glued to their screens reading the Bible, he explained, Hallow lets its users press “play,” close their eyes, and listen to the Bible. audio of a prayer.
Users are encouraged to develop a prayer habit by spending at least one minute in guided prayer with Hallow each day.
“The hardest part of praying is just doing it,” Jones told CNS. “It’s easy during the seasons of Lent and Advent when it’s a priority, but (at other times of the year) when there’s a lot of other things going on, it’s easy to fall short. side of that.”
The app lets users set goals and “you can add family members and friends to the app to keep you accountable,” he said. “You can set daily reminders.”
Read More Hispanic Ministry
Copyright © 2022 Catholic News Service/United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
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