Vatican
City, 27 December 2015 (VIS) – After celebrating the Mass for the
Feast of the Holy Family, the Holy Father appeared at the window of
his study in the Apostolic Palace to pray the Angelus with the
faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square. Before the Marian prayer,
the Pope recalled this past September''s meeting with families in
Philadelphia, USA as well as all the families he has met during his
apostolic trips and all the families around the world with these
words:
''I
would like to greet you all with affection and gratitude, especially
at this present time when the family is subjected to various kinds of
misunderstandings and difficulties that weaken it. Today's Gospel,''
he continued, ''invites families to capture the light of hope coming
from the house of Nazareth where Jesus grew up in joyfulness.''
''The
family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph is, for every believer and
especially for families, a true school of the Gospel. Here we admire
the fulfillment of God's plan to make the family a special community
of life and love. Here we learn that every Christian family is called
to be a ‘domestic church'', to make the light of the Gospel virtues
shine forth and to become leaven for the good in society. The typical
characteristics of the Holy Family are meditation and prayer, mutual
understanding and respect, a spirit of sacrifice, labor, and
solidarity.''
''Each
family can draw valuable guidance for lifestyles and life choices and
can draw strength and wisdom for the everyday journey from the
example and witness of the Holy Family. Our Lady and St. Joseph teach
us how to welcome children as a gift from God, to generate and
educate them by cooperating in a wonderful way with the Creator's
work; giving the world a new smile with every child. It is in the
united family that children bring their existence to maturity, living
a meaningful and effective experience of gratuitous love, of
tenderness, of reciprocal respect, of mutual understanding, of
forgiveness, and of joy.''
''The
true joy experienced in the family is not something casual or
accidental. It is a joy born of the profound harmony among persons,
which gives us a taste of the beauty of being together, of supporting
one another along the journey of life. But at the heart of that joy
is always God's presence, his welcoming, merciful, and patient love
toward all. If the doors of the family are not opened to the presence
of God and his love, the family loses its harmony, selfishness
prevails, and joy is extinguished. Instead, the family that lives the
joy of life, the joy of faith, spontaneously communicating it, is the
salt of the earth and light of the world. It is the leaven for all of
society.''
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