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--:-- John Bickley: Faith-based content has exploded in popularity with American audiences at a time when more and more people are identifying as non-religious and church attendance has declined. We speak to some of the people behind the popular new media about why this content is resonating with so many and discuss the spiritual direction of our nation.
--:-- Georgia Howe: I'm Georgia Howe with Daily Wire Editor-in-Chief John Bickley. It's April 2nd, Palm Sunday, and this is your Sunday edition of Morning Wire.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: Here to discuss the rise in religious content is Daily Wire reporter Amanda Prestigiacomo.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: So, tell us about some of this faith-based content and the viewership numbers this content's actually bringing in.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Yeah, it seems from films to podcasts to apps to television series, whichever medium you turn to, faith-based content is moving into the mainstream and climbing the charts. So let's get into these numbers. We've spoken in the past to creator Dallas Jenkins about the success of The Chosen. This is a multi-season series following the life of Jesus and his followers. It's one of the highest-grossing crowdfunded entertainment projects of all time, bringing in $10 million from donors. And so far, an estimated 100 million people worldwide have seen seasons one and two, with total views topping more than 440 million. Then we have Jesus Revolution This was a film released this year about Christian pastor Greg Laurie starring actor Kelsey Grammer That was a box office success grossing more than $25 million. There's also Catholic meditation and prayer app Hallow that made history on Ash Wednesday by landing at the number three spot on the Apple Store overall. The Hallow app has connected literally millions of people in prayer, scripture, and meditation, and has facilitated more than 175 million prayers worldwide. There's also the Bible in a Year podcast. This features priest Mike Schmitz reading and discussing scripture. Schmitz launched the podcast in January of 2021 and within 40 hours skyrocketed to the number one slot on Apple Podcasts. Schmitz managed to amass half a billion views and has consistently ranked number one in Apple Podcasts subgroups.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: So why is all of this faith-based programming gaining traction now? You know, I think the most obvious surface-level reason is that it's good content. People who have followed faith-based content know that that hasn't always been the case, but some of this new content is pulling more secular viewers because it's competitive in quality with other content out there. High quality and good storytelling tend to attract people no matter their religious background or lack thereof. There's also a large untapped audience of hundreds of millions of American Christians who want this content and haven't had many options, at least not from Hollywood, which used to be a gatekeeper of content creation. What we're seeing now is that independent production houses are cropping up outside of Hollywood, and they're focusing on faith-based content. But there may also be aspects of our cultural moment that are drawing more interest for this content.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: I spoke to Father Mike Schmitz of the wildly popular Bible in a Year podcast. He told me that the state of our culture has a lot of people searching for answers right now. What I recognize is that we have in our culture, we've lost a, what you might call a biblical worldview. Now we have some of the remnants of that, where obviously Western civilization is based off of Judeo-Christian principles and Judeo-Christian worldview. And yet, I don't know that a lot of us really, truly understand, not just where that comes from, but what that means ultimately. And I think there's this sense of hunger in people that says, not only do I want to understand life, I want to understand reality, but also I want to understand what God has to say about this.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: I also asked about the type of faith content people are craving and clinging to including his own podcast I think that The Chosen and Hallowed and you know the stuff that Ascension puts out The Bible in the Year and other things I think those are done excellently So there is a certain level of excellence that is being brought to this content. At the same time, I think that there is also a level of, like, maybe rawness or authenticity. It's not I'm trying to win you over or convince you or distract you away from the source of the thing. I'm trying to bring you to the source of the thing. I think that when it comes to the chosen, it's like, no, here's just the source of the thing. Here's what it probably would look like for Jesus to walk around 2,000 years ago. The Hallow app is all about, how can I pray? And not like you pray for me, but like, okay, how can I pray? And then same thing with the Bible. And it's just that sense of, well, here it is.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Really emphasizing the demand for raw biblical stories and other scripture, Father Mike told me that he's had podcasts before this, and none of them had close to the reach as Bible in a year. Some friends, even some people I didn't know, said, you know, congratulations on this. Don't let it go to your head. And I was thinking, like, oh, you know, thank you. I appreciate the concern. And then I thought, wait a second. I've had a podcast since 2007 of, like, Sunday homilies. I've had another podcast since 2015 of just kind of short Essential Presents videos. Both of those are just me, and they've never done as well as me just sitting down reading the Bible. So it's like my own content, this could not ever go to my head because it's just, yeah, like you said, it is just, I'm sitting down reading the Bible and then, you know, just kind of hopefully unpacking some aspects of this in a way that helps people make sense of what they just heard. And it is straightforward and incredibly accessible.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Now, it's been decades since a faith-based film went mainstream. I'm thinking specifically of The Passion of the Christ in the early 2000s. Yeah, exactly right. This was released back in 2004, and it broke all sorts of records. Coincidentally, just days ago, the trailer for the Passion sequel for the film was released online, so that'll be coming down the pike soon. Our own Megan Basham spoke to the film's director and co-writer, Mel Gibson, about what made the Passion so special, and it seems to align with Father Mike's assessment about the type of content that's doing so well today. Why did it resonate well? I mean, it was a pretty powerful story. I think I was just trying to be as true to the Gospels as I could. yet interpret them with my eye and through the eyes of art that I'd witnessed over the years and music and everything else. So I think it was a very potent story and seen from an aspect that I don't think anyone ever saw before was the degree of suffering And the willingness to do that which is again total humility So it worked on that level because I think it gave people a new understanding of what they were involved in when they go to worship or when they think about God.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: I also spoke to Alex Jones, the co-founder and CEO of Hallow, an app focused on prayer, scripture, and meditation. He talked to me about some of the feedback he's received from people who use the app. We get these notes from people who are really lost, people who have been addicted, abused, who are struggling, who are suicidal, who are in a really negative, really dark space. Young women who have body image issues, older men who have addiction issues. And they write to us and say, hey, I'm, you know, God changed my life through this.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Jones found that people turning to prayer was most pronounced during the pandemic. I think we're all really hungry for it and we're all in a deep need of it. And I think COVID showed us that, you know, with the depths of pain, anger, frustration, loneliness, depression, anxiety, grief, we can kind of distract ourselves from God in our normal day-to-day life when nothing crazy happens. But in those kinds of moments, you just realize how deep of a need you have. And the only thing that can really fill it is faith in God. He added that New Age approaches to handling grief and adversity are falling short. Jones told me about a friend who recently experienced the loss of a child when his wife had a stillborn son. They had to give birth and then bury their son the same day. And there's just nothing. You know, you can say, hey, go for a run or try to focus on your breath for a while or, you know, try to journal or whatever it is. But there's just nothing that can speak to that deep of a wound. All of that seems silly when you're talking about someone who lost their kid or when you're talking about someone who's been struggling with addiction for 10 years. I mean, only God can speak to the depth of that.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: While religious content is witnessing a boom, it's still true that the U.S. is more secular than ever. A recent poll from the Wall Street Journal showed that just 39% of Americans say their religious faith is important to them. That's down from 62% back in 1998, the first time the poll was conducted.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: I asked Father Mike about where he thought our nation was headed spiritually. I really do think that these are signs of hope. These are signs that God's not done. He's not done with our culture. He's not done with our country. and he's not done with us. And yeah, that gives me a lot of hope.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Well, a really interesting trend. And I think this says a lot about our cultural moment. Amanda, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Anytime.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That was Daily Wire reporter, Amanda Prestigiacomo. And this has been a Sunday edition of Morning Wire.
