The number one podcast in the world to start the new year is not from Joe Rogan.
It doesn’t belong to Alex Cooper, Mel Robbins or anyone from the Kelce clan.
It is owned by Father Mark-Mary Ames of Ascension Press. Or rather, as he told Fox News Digital: It belongs to God.
At a time when Bible sales experience a sudden spike Amid research showing that people are opting out of religiosity in general, it comes as somewhat of a surprise that “The Rosary in a Year (with Father Mark-Mary Ames, CFR)” climbed to #1 on Apple Podcasts to celebrate the new start of the year – holding that spot for three consecutive days before falling to a remarkable #2 on January 4.
The humble host is the Director of Communications and Director of Priestly Studies of the Franciscan Brothers of the Renewal (CFR), whose primary mission is to “embrace with all our hearts Jesus Christ and their Holy Father, Saint Francis of Assisi.”
The author of ‘Habits for Holiness’ caught up with Fox News Digital SEARCH25 DCa four-day event consisting of conference sessions, world-class Catholic keynote speakers, music, Mass and worship for anyone seeking their pillars of prayer, community, inspiration and entertainment. There he explained everything: what motivated him to live a virtuous life, what the rosary is really meant to be and how he Real thinks about the success of his podcast.
Podcast legend Joe Rogan’s ‘The Joe Rogan Experience’ currently sits at #3 on Apple Podcast’s Top Shows, just behind Father Mark-Mary Ames’ ‘The Rosary in a Year’, which dropped from the top of the charts on January 4 after three straight days graphic.
Father Mark-Mary Ames, born and raised in Orange County, California, in what he described as a “wealthy family,” said he was inspired by Mother Teresa to give up a life of privilege for the benefit of others.
“I heard there’s a group of Franciscans in New York who are hardcore and sleep on the floor. And I looked them up and I read our constitutions – what we say we’re talking about – and I thought, ‘If that’s true is, that’s all I’m looking for.’ So I was a very, very normal kid, on a normal path. And then God made this happen.”
“I was made to give my life to the poorest of the poor,” he added. “The great, deep experience of my life is what God has done in generosity. And so there is nothing that I have left behind or sacrificed that has not been repaid a hundredfold. It is in new and deeper ways.”
While it’s not the work he’s most proud of, the priest spoke to Fox News Digital about passing the baton from successful Ascension Press alum Father Mike Schmitz for his podcast ‘Rosary in a Year’, in which he describes the rosary itself as ‘the great remedy for our time’.
‘There’s something special God wants to do this through Mary that continues now. So it’s interesting that even Maria is the one who keeps coming,” he said. ‘I think the most important thing is that there seems to be some kind of special grace given by God to the Rosary, where he wants to do something. special work. And the rosary is the thing that unlocks it. It opens the door to grace.”
The podcast “The Rosary in a Year” was No. 1 at Apple in all categories for three days, ahead of Joe Rogan, to start 2025.
The rosary may be confusing and even intimidating to some, but the priest claims it is actually “perfect.”
“Praying the rosary… is like physical therapy for the soul.”
“It took hundreds of years for it to develop into what it is, as a perfect prayer that fits our way of receiving and coming to God,” he said. “But it’s also really good for our humanity. We’re everywhere. It’s really hard for us to focus and concentrate and the human ability to focus for an extended period of time in the concrete is a bit like the foundation on which prayer is built. It will be very difficult to hear God, to come to God, if you cannot pay attention at all. And so I think there is a part of praying the rosary that is like physical therapy the soul. The content works the concentration muscle within is really atrophied.”
While his podcast breaks each of the Marian mysteries and the structure of this perfect prayer for palatability, which offers both seasoned meditators and newcomers the opportunity to understand it in deeper ways, Father Mark-Mary revealed that the consecration of the Rosary can actually be a personal experience – which contributes to its perfection.
“(Saying the rosary) is not actually a commandment, but you have to go to Mass on Sundays,” he said, explaining the difference between devotional and liturgical prayer. “And so within the devotional there are good, good things. Whether it’s a good thing for you or not, there’s actually room for you to make that decision. There’s a lot more room for personalization.”
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The rosary expert further confessed that even he can lose focus when praying the prayer.
“One million percent,” he admitted. “And that’s like… it shouldn’t be controversial to people or turn them off. This is my own journey because I want to do better and grow deeper.”
That was precisely the motivation – or calling, as he described it – that compelled him to sign on as presenter of ‘The Rosary in a Year’.
“I’m just trying to be true to what’s in front of me. And if God wants to make this thing number one, great. If he wants to do all kinds of great things, then that’s for him.”
Despite the success so far, the famous monk told Fox News Digital that there are “better” things happening in the world that the media isn’t paying attention to:
“There are a lot of people in my life who are doing things that are much more beautiful and much more moving than having a number one podcast hit. People just don’t know about it,” he said. “I’m very grateful for the podcast, its popularity, and it’s a source of grace for people and helps them pray. (But) it’s not the hardest thing I do. It’s not the most honorable thing I do. And it’s certainly not the most heroic or moving thing that my brothers and neighbors do.”
Readers can learn more about these beautiful things here.
