Pope Francis encourages balance between family and work

The “delicate balance between family and work” was highlighted by Pope Francis during the audience he granted to a delegation from the Italian Association of Family Businesses, also inviting them to guide their activities by the gift of faith.

This association was founded in 1997 by Alberto Falck and a group of entrepreneurs inspired by the same values. It currently brings together about 270 companies.

The Italian Association of Family Businesses is part of the Family Business Networkthe international network present in 58 countries with more than 10,300 members.

In his brief speech, the Pontiff stated that “the Church is the family of God and looks favorably on everything that is family. First the people and then the family: no! “First the family and, within the family, the people.”

In that sense, he highlighted the “delicate balance between family and work” that characterizes the members of the association and “which is expressed in entrepreneurial courage and responsibility.”

“It is good, it is constructive when courage and responsibility go together. The action that comes from the heart is bold, it does not close in on itself, but knows how to look far; and responsibility, therefore, is the secret of the company, a word that means ‘management of the house’ —oikos nomos— and it is, therefore, an expression of care. Take care of your own company, take care of your family, take care of the common home, take care of future generations,” he encouraged.

Pope Francis then told them that, just like the mission of the Catholic Church, the activity of the association “is generally rooted in a territory, which they are called to enrich, both with the witness of family ties and with the seriousness of their professional commitment.”

“May the gift of faith increasingly guide your presence in local realities, and strengthen your participation in the fortunes of humanity,” he expressed.

The Holy Father asked them not to forget “that everything is connected”, although “the fraternity between people and peoples is very wounded and the common home bears the marks of unjust human greed.”

“Even bad things have a connection with all of us,” reiterated Pope Francis, who urged them to live “the local dimension with a universal heart,” and to spread throughout the world “the value of being ‘family’.”

Likewise, he encouraged them “to move forward, to feel part, in the Church, of a larger family and a larger work, which is service to the Kingdom of God and his justice. I invite you, therefore, to broaden your heart and your vision, to cultivate listening, at home and at work, between different generations.”

“Believe in your children’s vocation—whatever it may be—and open doors and windows to whoever wants to walk a part of the path with you. Let us remember the parable of the talents: nothing that has been entrusted to them should be ‘buried’. Do not be afraid and move forward with confidence,” Pope Francis concluded.