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Hallow is a Catholic prayer and meditation app that’s linking expertise and religion — and permitting customers to personalize their prayer expertise. It is also altering lives.
The phrase hallow means “to make holy.” And with 3.75 million downloads thus far, the app — headquartered in Chicago, Illinois — has facilitated over 100 million prayers throughout some 150 international locations since its launch in late 2018, says its creator, 29-year-old Alex Jones.
Fox Information Digital requested Jones in a telephone interview precisely what combining Christian perception and expertise affords — and the way the thought for the app first originated.
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The genesis for Hallow started with common meditation apps reminiscent of Headspace and Calm, which Jones loved utilizing and felt have been useful.
Hallow app creator Alex Jones sits within the pews of a church. He was enthusiastic about combining meditation and religion into one Catholic app — and launched his creation in late 2018.
(Spirit Juice Studios)
“I assumed they have been tremendous useful instruments to be taught meditation throughout the consolation of your personal dwelling,” Jones mentioned, noting that he’d beforehand drifted from his personal Christian roots.
Nonetheless, when utilizing meditation apps, Jones — a husband and father of two young children — mentioned he seen one thing.
“Each time I’d meditate, my thoughts would really feel pulled towards one thing Christian,” he mentioned. “A picture of the cross, or the Trinity, or the Holy Spirit, which I assumed was very unusual.”
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He began reaching out to associates, monks and pastors, “brothers and sisters I knew who’re deeper of their religion,” he famous.
“I’d ask, ‘Hey, is there any means there’s some intersection right here between this complete religion factor and this meditation factor?'” he mentioned.
Hallow app creator Alex Jones mentioned he “found this wealthy, stunning custom of contemplative and meditative prayer throughout the Catholic Church.”
(Spirit Juice Studios)
“All of them laughed at me and mentioned, ‘Yeah, we have been doing it for about 2,000 years. You’ve in all probability heard about it. It is referred to as prayer,'” he revealed.
Explaining that he “found this wealthy, stunning custom of contemplative and meditative prayer” throughout the Catholic Church, he famous that he additionally found “Ignatian spirituality, imaginative prayer — these items that I might actually by no means heard of earlier than.”
“If I spent the remainder of my life and all of my retirement financial savings, and God was in a position to do yet one more factor like this by means of the app, it should have been infinitely value it.”
He was quickly googling “Lectio Divina” — a Latin phrase which means “divine studying.” It is a meditative means of studying scripture during which readers open themselves to God’s messages, the Hallow web site notes.
What specific phrase stood out to Jones as he tried Lectio Divina?
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“Hallow,” from the Lord’s Prayer, he mentioned. “Our Father, hallowed be thy identify,” he added.
“Is God calling me to be holy?” Jones requested himself — together with the query, “Am I to be serving to different individuals develop in advantage?”
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“It simply modified my life — it introduced me to tears,” mentioned Jones.
“It introduced me again to my religion. It modified the whole lot about what I worth and crucial a part of who I’m.”
Jones questioned what was subsequent. “Is God calling me to be holy?” he requested himself, together with the query, “Am I to be serving to different individuals develop in advantage?”
He quickly started engaged on the primary rudimentary model of the app. “I knew how you can code a little bit bit, and so I coded the primary model of it,” he mentioned.
“It was horrible, however I used it and I assumed it was decently useful.”
He had just a few family and friends use the app, with memorable outcomes.
The Hallow app has 3 and a half million downloads thus far, based on its creator, Alex Jones.
(Spirit Juice Studios)
“I’ve one good friend, a younger lady, who was courting somebody,” he mentioned.
“After about 9 periods of meditating on the app,” he continued, “she realized that she was being referred to as to non secular life as a nun, so she broke up together with her boyfriend and dedicated” herself to God.
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Jones’ aunt, he mentioned, additionally not too long ago discovered her means through the use of her nephew’s app.
She had misplaced her solely son — Jones’ cousin and a brand new husband and father himself — all of the sudden from a coronary heart situation.
“Heartbreaking,” Jones mentioned. He added, “My aunt hadn’t gotten away from bed. She wasn’t in a position to eat.”
Meditating on the phrase “hallow” modified his life, Jones mentioned. “It introduced me to tears. It introduced me again to my religion.”
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She began utilizing the app across the Introduction season of 2018, he mentioned, and despatched Jones a word.
“Particularly this yr, I am going through this immense quantity of dread figuring out that I will be with out my son for the primary time,” she wrote to him.
“I simply need to let you understand that the one factor that is saved me going by means of this has been the meditations,” she continued.
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“Every morning it is jogged my memory of the hope and the peace and the which means of this season, and allowed me to type of ‘pact’ with God by means of this ache.”
“God can attain out to everyone at any stage of their lives.”
Jones defined, “If I spent the remainder of my life and all of my retirement financial savings, and God was in a position to do yet one more factor like this by means of the app, it should have been infinitely value it.”
Since its launch, the app has grown to supply a number of methods to worship. Advantages embody with the ability to hearken to meditations and reflections from “world-class retreat leaders that most individuals wouldn’t have the chance to [engage] with,” mentioned Jones, together with “unimaginable sermons. A few of the world’s main pastors are on the app.”
“Each time I’d meditate, my thoughts would really feel pulled towards one thing Christian,” Jones mentioned. “A picture of the cross, or the Trinity, or the Holy Spirit, which I assumed was very unusual.”
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Has this expertise discouraged church attendance? Jones mentioned it dietary supplements it.
“Our lowest utilization day is on Sundays — persons are going to church,” he mentioned. “We encourage them to go to church on Sunday and never use the app.”
“However all through the week, it is a actually useful method to attempt to construct a constant behavior of prayer,” he defined.
“You are being led in prayer in a structured, guided means that makes it loads simpler to spend time in silence — that may be fairly intimidating to do by yourself,” he mentioned.
“In-person participation for Sunday worship remains to be required by the Catholic Church.”
The Rev. Jeffrey Kirby, pastor of Our Girl of Grace Parish in Indian Land, South Carolina, mentioned that in-person Mass attendance is necessary for Catholics, for individuals who are ready to take action.
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“In-person participation for Sunday worship remains to be required by the Catholic Church,” he instructed Fox Information Digital through e-mail.
He added, “I’ve had many parishioners inform me that Hallow has been a godsend for them. It has proved to be a fast and easy-to-use useful resource for a lot of who’re busy however nonetheless need to develop of their religious lives.”
“Apps can present a framework,” mentioned the Rev. Jesse Bradley, “however the essence of prayer is your determination to worship God in spirit and in fact.”
(Spirit Juice Studios)
The Rev. Jesse Bradley, pastor of Grace Neighborhood Church within the Seattle space, instructed Fox Information Digital that in our “noisy, fast-paced” tradition, it is rather simple to skip prayer altogether.
“Having a set time, place and sources like apps can present a prayer focus that may show you how to domesticate a vibrant behavior,” he instructed Fox Information Digital in an e-mail.
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“Apps can present a framework,” he added, “however the essence of prayer is your determination to worship God in spirit and in fact.”
For Jones, one of many greatest surprises post-launch was the massive spike in younger customers.
“World political crises, inflation, the economic system — there have been a bunch of issues which are stressors for people. They have been feeling pissed off and hopeless.”
The common person is about 34 years outdated, he mentioned. Younger customers are enthusiastic about meditation and “need to see what it might be like to include their religion into that.”
“Or they’re struggling to sleep at evening, however they need to need to cease scrolling by means of Instagram or TikTok and use their time in a different way,” he mentioned.
“We have now customers like me … and we have got of us who’re retirees or who’re nearing the top of their life who’re attempting to make use of that point to dive deeper into their relationship with God,” mentioned Jones.
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“We have now customers like me, who’ve younger households, and youngsters who need to construct habits, and we have got of us who’re retirees or who’re nearing the top of their life who’re attempting to make use of that point to dive deeper into their relationship with God,” he mentioned.
“God can attain out to everyone at any stage of their lives,” Jones mentioned.
The app launched pre-COVID, and at the moment “there have been quite a lot of of us within the religious however not the non secular,” he mentioned.
Customers can “discover endurance and perseverance, and a way of peace away from the division and the anger of the world that we reside in.”
“As COVID went on and plenty of have been struggling with the lack of family members or illness themselves, Hallow was a spot the place they have been capable of finding that solace,” he continued.
As COVID progressed, “you had quite a lot of of us who have been indignant,” he mentioned. “World political crises, inflation, the economic system — there have been a bunch of issues which are stressors for people. They have been feeling pissed off and hopeless.”
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Customers can “discover endurance and perseverance, and a way of peace away from the division and the anger of the world that we reside in,” he mentioned.
Hallow has featured some well-known individuals not too long ago in promotional movies shared on social media.
Actor Mark Wahlberg is among the individuals selling the Hallow app.
(Getty Photographs)
Actor Mark Wahlberg is “one who helped share it,” Jones mentioned.
“He and his spouse use the app on a regular basis, they usually have been unimaginable companions.”
As Fox Information Digital beforehand reported, when Hallow discovered about Wahlberg’s 2022 film, “Father Stu,” the corporate reached out.
Quickly, a partnership was cast.
Hallow is working with different high-profile individuals of religion as nicely.
“As a baseline, we ensure that the whole lot on the app is 100% in keeping with church educating and theologically appropriate.”
Reflections, prayers and meditations on the theme of resilience can be found on the app from former Inexperienced Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre.
“He is bought a little bit little bit of one thing to say about when life knocks you down,” famous Jones.
One other sports activities legend who can be contributing quickly, based on Jones, is Lou Holtz, the famed former Notre Dame soccer coach.
Says creator Alex Jones (at left) of the Hallow app, “We need to construct one thing that is a instrument for Christians of any background.”
(Spirit Juice Studios/iStock)
Whereas individuals might not reply to a video message that includes a priest or a nun and even himself, Jones defined that “when somebody you’re an enormous fan of is speaking about how prayer has helped them by means of their profession and their life and the way it retains them grounded, it could ring a bell.”
The younger tech innovator mentioned the app’s power is in its faultless message.
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“As a baseline, we ensure that the whole lot on the app is 100% in keeping with church educating and theologically appropriate,” Jones mentioned.
This can be drawing worshippers of each denomination, which is the “final purpose” of Hallow.
“We have now tens of hundreds if not tons of of hundreds of non-Catholic Christians on the app,” he shared.
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“Probably the most energetic person on the app, at the least as of a yr or two in the past, was an evangelical lady who used it thrice a day for 400 days straight,” he mentioned.
“We need to construct one thing that is a instrument for Christians of any background,” Jones mentioned.