Bread 4 Today

26/01/2026

“Following Saturday’s tragic shooting in Minneapolis, I ask all people of good will to join me today in prayer for Alex Jeffrey Pretti, his parents, and his loved ones,” said Bernard A. Hebda, Archbishop of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. Archbishop Hebda urged the community to reflect on how we can help restore the Lord’s peace amid the tensions gripping Minnesota.

Alex Pretti, 37, was killed on Jan. 24 during an encounter involving federal agents, as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) continues what it has described as an intensified enforcement effort in the region, known as “Operation Metro Surge,” involving U.S. Immigration and Customs Enfo...

26/01/2026

Peace Connections Rome Trip 2026 – “Rome: Four Corners” was an interfaith peace-building pilgrimage and dialogue initiative, centred on Rome as a living crossroads of history, faith, power, and people.

We’re delighted to see both members of the Bread 4 Today prayer community and Common Home.tv supporters in attendance. Keep up the great work, 4 Corners Festival Belfast.

Redemptorist mission in action.

24/01/2026

Join us in prayer for the death of Alex Pretti, and for a lasting and just peace in Minnesota.

Hold close all who mourn
family, friends, colleagues,
and all who feel the weight of this loss
even from afar.

Where there is fear, let truth remain.
Where there is power, let conscience awaken.
Where there is grief, let love endure.

Receive Alex into your keeping,
and teach us again how to value
every human life.
Amen.

Alex Pretti, 37, was fatally shot on January 24, 2026, while protesting ICE actions in Minneapolis.

16/01/2026

We thank You for the gift of leadership that You have bestowed upon the women in our Church. We pray for all women who serve in various ministries and roles within our community, that they may be guided by Your wisdom and strengthened by Your grace. Grant them the courage to lead with compassion, the wisdom to discern Your will, and the perseverance to continue their work in the face of challenges. May they be beacons of hope and sources of inspiration for all. Bless their efforts to bring about justice, peace, and inclusivity, and may they continue to reflect Your love in all they do. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Anne Walsh, D.Min., a Redemptorist Lay Missionary talks to CommonHome.tv about her conversion story.

12/01/2026

Today we hold in prayer Gordon Smith, who died suddenly this morning in Jericho at the Mount of Temptation.

Gordon was a long-time member of the Bread 4 Today prayer community, praying with us faithfully over many years. The attached photo is of Gordon during a Bread 4 Today advertisement shoot, generously helping invite others into daily prayer.

Before joining the Custodia Terræ Sanctæ, Gordon had also lived his vocation as a Redemptorists of Oceania Brother, dedicating his life to prayer and service.

In this time of sorrow, the Custody has invited the faithful to renew our baptismal hope: “I believe in life everlasting.”

We join that prayer today.

🕯️
Lord of life,
receive your servant Gordon into your eternal light.
Comfort those who mourn,
and strengthen all of us in hope
as we await the resurrection.
Amen.

11/01/2026

🎸🙏 Father Oche Matutina is a member of the Bread 4 Today prayer community and a Redemptorists of Oceania priest, rocking outback pubs and praying with a guitar in hand.

Give this a like ❤️ to show your support and to stand with Oche and all those bringing faith into the everyday.

An Indonesian priest brings a deep love of rock 'n' roll to his pastoral care in western NSW.

08/01/2026

Today we join Archbishop Bernard Hebda of Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis in his call to prayer.

We hold in prayer Renee Nicole Good, her family and loved ones, and the wider Minnesota community in this moment of grief and strain. We pray for peace, for wisdom, and for the courage to see one another as made in the image and likeness of God.

Read more in the link in the comments.

07/01/2026

God of justice and peace,
we lift before you the beloved people of Venezuela.

May their good prevail over every other consideration.
Heal what has been wounded by violence,
and guide hearts and leaders onto paths of justice and peace.

Safeguard the sovereignty of the nation.
Strengthen the rule of law,
and protect the human and civil dignity of every person.

Teach all to work together for a serene future—
one marked by collaboration, stability, and concord.
Keep our eyes fixed especially on the poorest,
who bear the greatest burden of hardship and uncertainty.

May hope take root where despair threatens,
and may peace, grounded in truth and mercy,
become a living reality for all.

Amen.

05/01/2026

Everyone is moving in some capacity. Like the ‘magi’ and the shepherds, we are all called to be on the move, faithfully following wherever the Christ star may lead, and never really daunted by the length of the journey, the hardships, the skeptics and fear mongers, nor the loneliness that creeps up on us from time to time.

Today is the Feast of the Epiphany. Read more from the Redemptorists of Oceania.

The magi from the east represent everyone on this planet and all of creation. The magi are not portrayed in the gospel as kings, or even necessarily wise - they are astrologers who look into the darkness, see distant lights and become seekers of something bigger than themselves.

04/01/2026

God of the Journey, we pray for those who leave their homelands longing for freedom and new opportunities.

May they recognize you as their traveling companion and find a welcome awaiting them. January 5th is the feast of St John Neumann, patron of immigrants

St John Neumann’s feast day is January 5th.

02/01/2026

The bus in front was blocking my view of the road ahead. I wasn’t happy about it. But a child peering through the bus’s rear window and pulling faces chided me into a better space.

God, I get so serious at times. Help me to lighten up a bit. The road ahead is known not by you, not by me. May we travel it together, Lord, but not too seriously. Amen.

02/01/2026

A New Year reflection from one of your prayer community members.

"Today, we also celebrate the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God. What a perfect way to begin a new year. We start this journey with the Son of God and His Mother walking beside us."

A NEW YEAR REFLECTION
By Fr. Mans Boli C.Ss.R

A sick man once turned to his doctor as the doctor was preparing to leave the examination room and said, “Doctor, I am afraid to die. Tell me—what lies on the other side?”

Very quietly, the doctor replied, “I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?” the man asked. “You, a Christian man, do not know what is on the other side?”

The doctor was holding the door handle. From the other side came the sound of scratching and whining. As he opened the door, a dog sprang into the room, tail wagging, overflowing with joy.

Turning to the patient, the doctor said, “Did you notice my dog? He has never been in this room before. He didn’t know what was inside. He knew nothing except one thing: that his master was here. And when the door opened, he entered without fear. I know very little about what lies on the other side of death, but I know one thing—I know my Master is there, and that is enough.”

The title of this story is “What Lies on the Other Side.” It is a fitting story to begin a new year.

Every time we enter a new year, many questions fill our minds. What will happen? Will we be happier this year? Will there be progress in our lives? What is waiting for us ahead—joy or sorrow, peace or struggle, change or the same problems we carried from last year?

Out of 365 days, today is only the first. What will happen in the next 364 days? What will even happen by the end of this day? The truth is, we do not know. But not knowing does not mean there is no hope.

We have just celebrated Christmas—the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, Emmanuel, God with us. He is the fulfillment of God’s promise to never abandon His people. God became one of us because He wanted to walk with us, to share our joys and to feel our pain.

From the very beginning, Jesus chose the lowest place in human life. He was born into a simple family in Nazareth. He was laid in a manger on a cold night. And at the end of His life, He chose the cross. He willingly embraced the most difficult path so that whenever we face suffering, trials, or uncertainty, we may know that we are not alone. He has gone before us.

It is beautiful that we celebrate the New Year immediately after Christmas. As we step into this new year, we do not walk alone. Jesus—our Master, the Emmanuel is with us.

Today, we also celebrate the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God. What a perfect way to begin a new year. We start this journey with the Son of God and His Mother walking beside us.

They do not promise a year without problems. They do not promise an easy life. But they promise something far greater: that we will never walk alone. And that is enough.

Happy New Year.