The Pope reflected on the Sunday reading from the Gospel of Luke in which a young Jesus stayed in Jerusalem in the Temple, causing great distress to Mary and Joseph when they could not find him.
"For this little 'escapade,' Jesus probably had to beg forgiveness of his parents," the Pope suggested. "The Gospel doesn't say this, but I believe that we can presume it."
He said that Mary's question to Jesus, "why have you treated us like this?" contains "a certain reproach, revealing the concern and anguish which she and Joseph felt." The Pope that Jesus "surely remained close" to Mary and Joseph as a sign of his "complete affection and obedience."
"Moments like these become part of the pilgrimage of each family; the Lord transforms the moments into opportunities to grow, to ask for and to receive forgiveness, to show love and obedience," Pope Francis said.
"To all of you, dear families, I entrust this most important mission--the domestic pilgrimage of daily family life - which the world and the Church need, now more than ever."
Later on Sunday in his Angelus remarks to pilgrims and tourists gathered in St. Peter's Square, the Pope said that the example and witness of the Holy Family provides valuable guidance for life. In the Holy Family, families can find "strength and wisdom for the journey of every day."
"Our Lady and Saint Joseph teach us to welcome children as a gift from God, to get them and rear them, cooperating in a wonderful way with the Creator's work and giving to the world, in every child, a new smile."
He stressed the virtues of love, tenderness, mutual respect, mutual understanding, forgiveness and joy.
After the Angelus he voiced his thoughts for the many Cuban migrants stranded on the Nicaragua-Costa Rica border. He said many of them are human trafficking victims. He invited the region's countries to take "all necessary efforts" to resolve the humanitarian crisis.