The most popular Catholic podcast of all time will soon be available in Malayalam, a language used by more than 35 million people from the southwest Indian state of Kerala.
The Bible in a Year—Malayalam will launch on January 1, 2025 and be hosted by Fr. Daniel Poovannathil, a renowned Bible teacher from the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church. “Danial achan,” as he is fondly called, is already a household name among Malayalees around the world. Fr. Poovannathil is the director of Mount Carmel Retreat Centre in Vettinad, Trivandrum, in Kerala.
The Bible in a Year—Malayalam originated with a small group of devoted Bible in a Year listeners from Bangalore, India. With the support of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India, they reached out to Ascension with a request to make The Bible in a Year available in India’s vernacular languages in order to reach its 1.4 billion souls with the message of the Gospel, the vast majority of whom do not speak English. Due to the rich history of the Catholic Church in Kerala state—which reaches all the way back to the evangelizing efforts of the apostle St. Thomas—Malayalam became the first language chosen for this project. Along the way, Ascension partnered with a group of lay people with a zeal to spread God’s Word to produce the podcast. The partnership extended to the Mount Carmel Retreat Center to help amplify the podcast’s reach.
“The Bible in a Year—Malayalam is such an exciting initiative for us,” explains Ascension President and CEO, Jonathan Strate. “We were impressed with the missionary zeal and professionalism of the team from India which approached us with the project, and we are honored by the support of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India. While English is spoken by many in India, there is something uniquely powerful about hearing the Bible preached in one’s own native tongue. Our prayers are with the BIYM team as this first podcast launches. We hope it is the first of many such resources created specifically for the Church in India.”
In an Instagram reel posted on December 1, Fr. Mike Schmitz symbolically “passed the Bible” to Fr. Daniel saying, “Fr. Daniel, take it away.”
To download the reading plan, listen to the podcast, and learn more about this project, visit the beautiful website created by the BIYM team and powered by Ascension: www.BIYIndia.com.
About Fr. Daniel Poovannathil
Renowned Bible teacher Fr. Daniel Poovannathil from the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church is the face and voice of The Bible in a Year–Malayalam podcast. “Daniel achan,” as he is fondly called, is a household name among Malayalees across the world and his preaching and teaching impacts lives daily. Fr. Daniel is the director of Mount Carmel Retreat Centre (MCRC) in Vettinad, Trivandrum, and records from the center when he is in Kerala. At other times, when mission calls, Daniel achan travels with his podcast equipment to ensure that his recordings are done despite busy schedules.
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 over 20 million Catholics through award-winning books, the chart-topping Bible in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)® podcast, more than 50 unique faith formation programs, and the Ascension Presents media and YouTube platforms.
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