Build + Become
Prayer Explorer
A quiet companion for daily Catholic prayer, Scripture, and the liturgical year.
Prayer Explorer is a free, offline Catholic prayer and Bible app for iPhone and iPad. It brings together traditional prayers, the Rosary, three public-domain Bible translations, reading plans, the liturgical calendar, reminders, and private on-device Pray Along.
Project
What I built
Prayer Explorer began as an attempt to create a calm, private, and useful companion for daily Catholic prayer. It combines Scripture, traditional prayers, guided Rosary sessions, the liturgical year, reminders, reading progress, and audio playback in one app designed to work without an account or constant internet connection.
The app was built solo with React Native, Expo, and TypeScript. Some of its most important capabilities required custom iOS development, including lock-screen text-to-speech playback, Siri shortcuts, and iCloud key-value backup.
- Platform
- iPhone and iPad
- Version
- 1.0
- Price
- Free
- Accounts
- None
- Ads
- None
- Analytics
- None
- Internet required
- No, for core content
- Bible translations
- 3
- Catholic Bible books
- 73
- Prayers and devotions
- 48
- Liturgical calendar
- 2025–2032
Signature feature
Prayer that follows along with you
Most prayer apps play audio to the user. Prayer Explorer can instead listen as the person prays aloud and highlight the current line.
The speech-recognition flow is designed to run on-device. The app uses fuzzy text matching to follow natural spoken prayer, including responsorial prayers and complete Rosary sessions.
- Line-by-line highlighting
- On-device speech recognition
- Simple and guided modes
- Rosary repeat handling
- Responsorial prayer support
- Text-to-speech alternative
- Siri shortcut support
Your spoken prayer is not sent to a Prayer Explorer server because Prayer Explorer does not operate one.
Feature tour
Inside the app
Today and the liturgical year
The Today screen anchors the app in the Church year. It shows the current liturgical season and color, the day's rank and holy-day information, Mass reading references, and a suggested prayer for the day.
A monthly calendar covers 2025 through 2032, and feast days can be exported to the device calendar.
Traditional prayers and devotions
The library holds 48 traditional prayers and devotions across 10 categories, including the Divine Mercy Chaplet. Prayer search, favorites, reminders, and source notes make the collection practical for daily use.
Prayers can be grouped into playlists called Praylists, so a personal sequence of prayers plays or displays in order.
The full Rosary
All four mystery sets are included, each with its five mysteries, and the app follows the traditional weekday schedule so the right set is suggested each day.
Guided sessions walk through the complete Rosary, and Pray Along can follow the whole thing aloud, including its repeated prayers.
Scripture, fully offline
Three public-domain translations are bundled with the app: the World English Bible, the King James Version, and the Douay-Rheims, which carries all 73 books of the Catholic canon.
Five reading plans, progress tracking, verse notes, and favorites keep a reading habit going, and the reader picks up where the last session ended.
Read aloud from the lock screen
Text-to-speech playback covers both the Bible and the prayer library, with word highlighting and an adjustable voice and speed.
A custom native playback module adds iOS Now Playing support, so chapters and prayers keep reading with full controls from the lock screen.
Privacy
Private by design, not just by policy
Prayer Explorer does not need to know who is praying, what they are reading, or how often they return. Core content is bundled directly with the app. Progress, notes, favorites, reminders, and settings stay on the device, with optional iCloud backup for users who choose it.
- No Prayer Explorer account
- No Prayer Explorer backend
- No analytics SDK
- No advertising
- No tracking
- No crash-reporting SDK
- Content stored locally
- Optional iCloud backup
- Speech recognition designed for on-device operation
- Only optional request checks for updated prayer and calendar data
What leaves your phone?
- An optional public GitHub data-update request
- User-directed links to official USCCB readings
- Optional RevenueCat purchase communication when donations are enabled
Content decisions
Building carefully around Scripture and licensing
One of the most important product decisions was what not to copy. Prayer Explorer uses public-domain Bible translations so Scripture can remain available offline without creating licensing conflicts. For the official United States Catholic readings, the app provides references and links to the USCCB instead of reproducing protected lectionary text.
Sources and translation disclaimers are included in the app. Bible content is bundled offline, while prayers and calendar data can be updated through a public data manifest without an app release.
Case study
What it took to build
Offline-first content
- Three bundled Bibles
- About 13 MB of Scripture JSON
- Bundled prayer library
- 2,922 liturgical-calendar days
- Graceful fallback when offline
Native iOS audio
- Custom Objective-C module
- Lock-screen playback
- Now Playing metadata
- Remote playback controls
- Chapter queue handling
On-device speech
- iOS speech recognition
- Fuzzy matching
- Prayer-line tracking
- Rosary repeat-block logic
Private synchronization
- AsyncStorage
- Optional iCloud key-value backup
- Restore-before-backup ordering
- Merge rules
- Local reminders
Data updates without app releases
- Public manifest
- Calendar and prayer updates
- Bundled fallback
- No user account required
Release engineering
- Expo development build
- EAS production profiles
- TypeScript
- Jest tests
- iPhone and iPad support
Tradeoffs
What I chose not to ship
A project can become less useful when it tries to become everything. Some planned features were removed or deferred so the first version could be focused, private, and complete. The goal was not to ship the longest feature list. It was to ship a dependable prayer companion.
Removed from version 1
- Church finder
- Confession guide
- Mass response trainer
Possible future work
- Spanish localization
- Expanded readings beyond current coverage
Requires licensing or additional review
- Official licensed NABRE text
Pricing
Everything is available without a subscription
Prayer Explorer does not place prayers, Scripture, reading plans, reminders, or audio behind a paywall.
If configured and available, users may make an optional one-time “Proud to Pray” donation. The donation does not unlock content because no content is locked.
Support is optional. Prayer is not a premium feature.
Why it matters
Why this belongs on Jonathan Do
Prayer Explorer sits at the intersection of two things I care about: learning how to build useful technology and exploring faith more deeply. Building it required me to learn about app architecture, speech recognition, Scripture licensing, Catholic traditions, privacy, and what belongs in a focused first release.
This project represents what Jonathan Do is meant to document: choosing something meaningful, learning what it takes, building it, making mistakes, and sharing the process so others can learn from it. That is what Build and Become are for.
Timeline
How it came together
Initial concept
First working app structure
Prayer library and Bible foundation
Pray Along prototype
Rosary system
Liturgical calendar generation
Lock-screen audio module
Privacy and licensing review
Feature cuts for version 1
TestFlight preparation
App Store launch
Ideas under consideration
What comes next
These are possible directions, not promises. What ships next depends on what early users actually need.
- Broader Mass-reading reference coverage
- Spanish localization
- Further accessibility work
- Prayer and calendar content updates
- Continued lock-screen playback refinement
- Additional devotional content
- Optional merchandise
- Learning from early users
FAQ
Common questions
Is Prayer Explorer free?
Yes. Core content and features are free. An optional donation may be available, but it does not unlock content.
Does it require an account?
No.
Does it work offline?
Core prayers, Bible text, calendar content, notes, progress, reminders, and reading features are designed to work offline.
Which Bible translations are included?
World English Bible, King James Version, and Douay-Rheims. Douay-Rheims includes the 73-book Catholic canon.
Does Prayer Explorer contain the official NABRE Mass readings?
No. It provides reading references and links to the official USCCB readings rather than reproducing licensed lectionary text.
Does the app record or upload my prayers?
Prayer Explorer does not operate a backend for prayer recordings. Pray Along is designed to use on-device speech recognition.
Is it available on Android?
Prayer Explorer version 1 is focused on iPhone and iPad.
Is it available now?
Not yet. The current status is: launching soon. Follow the journey for updates.
A quieter way to pray, read, and follow the liturgical year
Prayer Explorer brings traditional Catholic prayer, offline Scripture, and the Church calendar together in one private iOS app.
Built and written by Jonathan Do
I learn how to build useful things, document what works, and share the process. Prayer Explorer is one part technology project, one part faith journey, and one example of what can happen when I decide to learn how to do something.
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