Yet families must not feel hopeless about the struggles they face, he added.
“Let’s not forget that God is with us: In our family, in our neighborhood, in the city where we live, he is with us. And He takes care of us. He remains with us at all times in the swaying of the boat tossed by the sea: when we argue, when we suffer, and when we’re joyful,” Pope Francis says.
The video is part of a series created by the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network in collaboration with the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life. You can watch the full video for the month of June below.
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The network noted in a press release that “the family continues to be the main source of meaning in the lives of many people.” The network pointed to Pew Research Center survey in 2021 that asked people in 17 countries what provides the most meaning to their lives. Most ranked their family first, ahead of their career, health, or well-being.
Father Frédéric Fornos, S.J., the prayer network’s international director, observed in the press release that the pope highlights that “the family is the place where we learn to live with differences.”
“Encountering people who are different is a richness, not a threat. In today’s world it seems as if differences create confrontation when they should instead open new paths,” Fornos said.
“The family is a place to learn to love, to live with differences, learning from mistakes, being aware that the Lord is present to help and accompany us,” Fornos said. “This experience of God’s presence is born from prayer; this is why it is important to pray for this intention of the pope.”
