A Hallow Alternative for Learning the Bible Itself
Hallow helps you pray. If you also want to learn the stories behind the prayers, here is a different kind of app, taught passage by passage.
If you search for a Hallow alternative, you may not be unhappy with Hallow at all. You may pray with it every day and now want to learn the Bible stories behind the prayers. Prayer and Bible teaching are two different jobs. This page explains what Hallow does, what it leaves to other tools, and what a Bible lesson app adds without assuming one tradition.
What Hallow is and who it serves
Hallow describes itself as an app for Christian and Catholic prayer, meditation, Bible and sleep. On its own site it points to guides such as the Rosary, novenas and morning and night prayers. It has app store links for iOS and Android, and a section for parishes and schools.
So Hallow is first of all a prayer companion. You open it to pray, to be still, or to use its sleep content. It is rooted in Catholic practice, though it speaks to Christians more widely. If your goal is a daily habit of prayer, that is its job, and it is built for it.
Prayer apps and Bible teaching are different jobs
A prayer app asks, "How do I pray today?" A Bible teaching app asks, "What does this passage say, and what did it mean?" Both are good questions. They use different tools.
Think of a person who prays an evening prayer built on the story of Jesus entering Jerusalem. The words are beautiful. But the person may not know why the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, what the branches meant, or why the city was full of visitors. The prayer works without that. Yet knowing the story often makes the prayer richer, because you pray with the scene in your mind.
This is true in other traditions too. A believer from any church, or a person only curious about Christianity, meets verses in sermons, songs and holidays. Many want to learn the full story behind them. A prayer app does not set out to teach it.
The passages behind the prayers, taught by the writers
BibleCrown teaches the Bible passage by passage, in lessons of about five minutes. Each lesson quotes the key verses word for word and explains what happens, what it meant to the first readers, and what the passage teaches. Where Christian traditions read a passage differently, a short, fair note says so. The lessons do not push one tradition and do not ask you to believe anything.
The presenter is the Gospel writer whose account the track follows. The track "The Last Week Begins" is taught with Mark. It follows the first days of the final week in Jerusalem:
- Blind Bartimaeus calls out.
- Garments on the road.
- The fig tree that withered.
- Perfume poured at Bethany.
- Night in Gethsemane.
Take "Garments on the road" as an example. In Mark 11, Jesus enters Jerusalem on a young donkey, and people spread their cloaks and branches on the road. A lesson explains why a donkey, why the cloaks, and what the shout of the crowd meant to people who knew the old prophets. It also notes what Mark leaves out. You finish with a clear picture of the scene. That picture can then sit behind a prayer, a hymn, or a service you attend in Holy Week.
"Night in Gethsemane" works the same way. The passage is short, but it holds a garden, three sleepy friends, a prayer and an arrest. The lesson walks through it in order, and defines each name and term.
Side by side
| Hallow | BibleCrown | |
|---|---|---|
| Main job | Guided prayer and meditation | Teaching the Bible's story |
| Format | Prayers, guides, meditations, sleep content | Short lessons with a presenter, quotes and a quiz |
| Time per session | Varies | About five minutes |
| Tradition | Christian, with a Catholic base | Open to any tradition or none, with fair notes on differences |
| Bible content | Bible content alongside prayer | Whole passages explained step by step |
| Device | iOS and Android apps | Phone app and web |
| Price model | See the app listing for how it is sold | See the BibleCrown app for how it is offered |
Who should pick which
Pick Hallow if you want a guided prayer habit: morning prayer, the Rosary, a quiet moment, or help to sleep. It does that job, and BibleCrown does not try to.
Pick BibleCrown if you want to learn what the Bible says and meant, and you want it taught in a way that fits any background. It suits people who are new to the Bible, people who hear passages in church and want to know more, and people who are curious but do not belong to a church.
Use both if you like. Learn a passage in a lesson, then carry it into your prayer. Many readers find that the two help each other.
If you look for passages for hard days, see Bible passages for hard times explained. If the church calendar interests you, read the church year seasons from Advent to Easter. To compare other tools, see the best Bible study apps for beginners.
Questions people ask
Can I use BibleCrown for prayer?
Each lesson ends with a reflection question, which many people use as a quiet moment. But BibleCrown is a teaching app, not a prayer guide. For guided prayer, a prayer app is the right tool.
Is BibleCrown Catholic or Protestant?
Neither. It teaches from the text of the Bible and is made for believers and curious readers from any tradition or none. Where traditions differ, the lesson says so briefly and fairly.
I only know Bible stories from church. Where do I start?
Start with the final week of Jesus in Mark, or begin at the beginning with the Gospel of Luke. Each lesson explains its own setting, so you will not be lost.
Do the lessons match the church calendar?
They are not tied to it, so you can learn at any time. A track on the last week of Jesus is a good companion to the weeks before Easter, but you can take it in any season.
Learn this in five minutes
Try the track "The Last Week Begins", taught with Mark. Its lessons follow Jesus from a blind beggar on the road to a garden at night, with every scene explained.