Vatican City, Oct 13, 2013 / 12:48 pm
Pope Francis on Sunday preached about the importance of gratitude and thankfulness for the Christian community and for family life.
"If we can realize that everything is God's gift, how happy will our hearts be! Everything is his gift. He is our strength!" he told the crowd of about 150,000 gathered for Mass in St. Peter's Square Oct. 13.
"Saying 'thank you' is such an easy thing, and yet so hard!" his homily continued. "How often do we say 'thank you' to one another in our families? These are essential words for our life in common."
The Pope gave special attention to the need to show consideration for one's family.
"If families can say these three things, they will be fine. 'Sorry,' 'excuse me,' 'thank you.' How often do we say 'thank you' in our families? How often do we say 'thank you' to those who help us, those close to us, those at our side throughout life? All too often we take everything for granted!"