Pope Francis: with the family or the community, "thank you" and "sorry" are the key words

Everyone, including the pope, has someone they should thank God for and someone they should apologize for, said Pope Francis.

Celebrating a morning mass in the chapel of his residence on February 14, Francis thanked God for a woman named Patrizia, who retired after 40 years of work in the Vatican, more recently in the Domus Sanctae Marthae, a pension where the pope and some live other Vatican officials.

Patrizia and other members of the papal residence are part of the family, the pope said in his homily. A family is not only "dad, mom, brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles and grandparents", but includes "those who accompany us on the journey of life for a while".

"It would be good for all of us who live here to think about this family that accompanies us," the pope said to other priests and sisters who live in the residence. "And you who do not live here, think of the many people who accompany you on the journey of your life: neighbors, friends, work colleagues, fellow students."

"We are not alone," he said. “The Lord wants us to be a people, wants us to be with others. He doesn't want us to be selfish; egoism is a sin. "

Remembering people who assist you when you are sick, help you daily or simply offer a wave, a nod or a smile should lead to expressions of gratitude, the pope said, urging worshipers to offer a thank you prayer to God for their presence in your life and a word of thanks to them.

"Thank you, Lord, for not leaving us alone," he said.

“It's true, there are always problems and wherever there are people, there is gossip. Also here. People pray and people chat - both, ”said the pope. And people sometimes lose patience.

"I want to thank the people who accompany us for their patience and ask for forgiveness for our shortcomings," he said.

"Today is a day for each of us to thank and ask sincere forgiveness from the people who accompany us in life, for a little bit of our life or for our whole life," said the Pope.

Taking advantage of the celebration of Patrizia's retirement, she offered a "big, big, big thank you to those who work here at home".