Pilgrim: Bible & Prayer

A Bible-first iOS app for Reformed-leaning Protestants. Free. Non-commercial. Built around Scripture and the historic confessions.

What Pilgrim Is

Pilgrim is a focused iOS app that combines a Bible reader, catechism-paired reading plans, a memory tool for Scripture and confessional Q&A, sermon notes, an answered-prayer log, and small private "Circles" for accountability among trusted friends.

It is designed for adult Christians — particularly those in the Reformed tradition — who want depth without the cost of professional study tools and without the cluttered social feed of mainstream Bible apps.

What Pilgrim Is Not

• Not a commercial product. There is no In-App Purchase, no subscription, and no advertising in the launch version.
• Not a Bible publisher. Pilgrim displays Scripture obtained through official, properly-licensed APIs and bundled public-domain translations. We do not redistribute, sell, or modify Scripture text.
• Not an AI doctrine engine. Pilgrim does not generate theological commentary. All confessional and Scripture text is quoted verbatim from public-domain sources.

Intended Use of the ESV (English Standard Version)

The ESV is one of seven English Bible translations offered to Pilgrim users. We are applying for non-commercial ESV API access from Crossway under the terms published at api.esv.org.

How the ESV is used inside Pilgrim

• Display only. ESV passages are fetched on demand to display inside the app's chapter reader, daily reading-plan rows, and sermon-note context. They are never exported, shared as files, or republished.
• Cached on the user's device for offline reading after first download. The cache is encrypted at rest by the iOS sandbox.
• Server-side cache. A Cloudflare Worker proxy fronts the api.esv.org endpoint. Cached responses are keyed by passage reference and held for 30 days to minimize repeat traffic, in keeping with the 5,000-requests-per-day cap.
• Attribution. Every chapter view that contains ESV text displays the required Crossway attribution and copyright line, in keeping with the API terms.
• No fee charged for ESV access. Pilgrim ships free. There is no premium tier, no upsell, and no ad inventory.

If Pilgrim ever introduces a paid feature

The app contains a hard-coded guardrail (ESVTranslationAvailable = !FeatureFlags.paywallEnabled) that automatically removes ESV access if any In-App Purchase is enabled. Before any paid feature ships, we will either negotiate a commercial ESV license with Crossway or drop ESV from the translation list.

Translations Offered

Confessional Content

Reading plans and the memory tool pair Scripture with question-and-answer text from public-domain confessional sources:

• Heidelberg Catechism (1563)
• Westminster Shorter Catechism (1647)
• Westminster Larger Catechism (1648)
• Westminster Confession of Faith (1647)
• Belgic Confession (1561)
• Canons of Dort (1619)
• 1689 London Baptist Confession
• Apostles' and Nicene Creeds (BCP 1662 English)

All confessional text is quoted verbatim from public-domain editions. No modern, copyrighted translations are used.

Privacy

Pilgrim does not collect personal data on a server. The app uses iCloud (your Apple ID) for sync and CloudKit shared zones for private "Circles." We have no server-side user database. See the Pilgrim privacy addendum for details.

Developer

Pilgrim is built by Brendan Pratt under Everlight Digital, a sole-proprietor iOS studio based in the United States. Pilgrim is an independent project with no church, denomination, or publisher affiliation.

Contact

For licensing questions, partnership inquiries, or Crossway/API.Bible verification:
brendan@everlight-digital.com