“The Sisters of Life Answer the Internet’s Top Questions About Nuns,” a viral Ascension Presents video with over 4.4 Million total views on social media, earned a Gold Telly Award for video excellence in the 2024 competition.
In January 2024, a charming YouTube video featuring two cheerful members of the Sisters of Life—Sr. Mary Grace, S.V., and Sr. Marie Veritas, S.V.—launched on Ascension Presents. With joy and amusement, the Sisters answered top questions about their religious way of life including:
- “Can sisters drive?”
- “Why do sisters wear habits?”
- “How do sisters get their names?”
The video quickly became one of the most viral videos off all time for video producer Ascension, amassing over 4.4 Million views on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook. Ascension is a Catholic multimedia publisher best known for its Bible in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)™ podcast, which was the #1 podcast on Apple for 24 days in 2021-2022 and has been Chartable’s most frequent #1 Global Podcast in Religion & Spirituality since 2021.
The “Telly Gold” earned by this viral video is the second gold win for Ascension, and marks the 6th year in a row that the company has received recognition from the Telly judges.
“Our mission is to share the truth and beauty of the Catholic faith,” explains Ascension President and CEO, Jonathan Strate. “Video is an essential way to communicate beauty in our digital age. We are proud to work hard on the video quality of our programs and evangelizing messages, and we are honored that a respected organization like the Telly Awards has recognized the truly outstanding caliber of our video offerings.”
Silver Award for “Encounter” Video Program for Middle School
Ascension also earned a Silver Telly Award for Encounter: The Bible Timeline for Middle School, the latest video-based offering in Ascension’s catalog of Catholic faith formation resources. Designed for use in Catholic school, religious education, or youth group settings, the 8-video and workbook program takes teens on a charismatic, fast-paced tour of the key persons and events of the Catholic Bible. Hosted by Mark Hart, Encounter was written by Hart as well as Colin and Aimee MacIver, and features additional video presentations from Chika Anyanwu, Tanner Kalina, Fr. Frankie Cicero, and Ashley Hinojosa.
About the Telly Awards
According to the Telly Awards website, the competition was founded in 1979 and over the years has honored video excellence in applications ranging from television commercials to digital video. Today, top competition categories include non-broadcast video, branded content, social video, and television, and 2024 award winners include companies like Adobe, Delta Airlines, and LinkedIn.
About Ascension
Ascension is a multimedia network and the leader in Catholic faith formation and digital content. Over the past 25 years, Ascension has helped nurture the faith of more than 10 million Catholics through award-winning books, the chart-topping Bible in a Year and Catechism in a Year podcasts, more than 50 unique faith formation programs, and Ascension Presents, which hosts one of the largest Catholic YouTube channels in English.