North American Catholics have emerged as impactful contributors to the worldwide surge in podcast and audiobook listening, as well as e-book reading, in recent years.
Recognizing this trend, Charlie McKinney, the president of the Catholic publishing company Sophia Institute Press, an avid enthusiast of audio books himself, is launching a new app called Saintifi on Oct. 1.
This platform represents the first comprehensive catalogue of 200 audio books, 300 e-books and dozens of podcasts.
The podcast ascent, in particular, first became noticeable throughout 2021 and 2022 as Fr. Mike Schmitz’s Bible in a Year podcast series soared to No. 1 in the Apple Podcasts charts. The sequel project, Catechism in a Year, also led Apple’s “All categories” chart in 2023 for multiple days.
Bishop Robert Barron’s Word on Fire, Matt Fradd’s Pints with Aquinas and Abiding Together, co-hosted by Sr. Miriam James, Michelle Benzinger and Heather Khym, are among the host of programs attracting robust and loyal followings.
As for audio books, this industry enjoyed a 13-per-cent growth rate in 2024 according to the Audio Publishers Association sales survey.
While providing a more cost-effective pathway for Catholics to consume faith-driven content was one of the primary impetuses for McKinney to develop Saintifi, he recognizes there is providence to the timing of this application’s introduction into the online marketplace.
“People are looking for truth,” said Mckinney, who has published over 1,000 books and distributed an additional five million titles. “The world’s a bad place and it seems like it’s getting worse. I think a lot of people are opening their eyes to that, and if you’re on a search for truth, you’re going to end up in the Catholic Church.
“A place like Sophia Institute Press has an obligation to bring that content to them,” continued Mckinney. “The timing couldn’t be better at a time when the (youthful) generation is seemingly coming back to the faith, to provide an opportunity like this to foster their faith and help them to grow deeper with Christ and help them to develop their spiritual life.”
Saintifi will not be a stagnant application. The plan, said McKinney, is for seven to 10 books published by Sophia Institute Press to be added to the platform each month. More podcasts are expected to be added on a recurring basis.
McKinney added that discussions are also underway with other major publishing companies in North America to come together. He expressed hope that a major announcement could be made “in the coming weeks or months.”
Upon Saintifi’s launch next month, McKinney expressed hope that it can be viewed by Catholic apostolates “as a critical piece of that effort” in making truth accessible and connecting with young people.
