up i would have stayed with you all night a lifenown how to save this up with me and sing now. wronge did i go i lost a friend i would have stayed up with you all night save a lifehow to ♪ ♪ [applause]

♪ >> ♪

♪ ♪

[applause and cheering] >> thank you so much. thank you. thank you. [applause and cheering] >> thank you. i love you in "ted" by the way.

wow. that, that right there was truly the voice of an angel. [applause] mark: but then he whispered in my ear that he loved the movie "ted." [laughter] mark wallace: i told him that was not appropriate for a boy of his age. goode always hope that the lord has a sense of humor when it comes to many of the movies i have made. in 1977, this philadelphia eagle running back ran many yards for a touchdown, he then gracefully took to one knee and prayed. pastorseen a senior

since 1982 in nt has committed toself to being of service those affected by poverty. he will read from luke 15 to share with us the prodigal son story. go eagles! -- go eagles! >> my brothers and sisters in the lord, listen to the words of the holy gospel according to saint john. two sons.d, a man had the younger son said to his father, father give me my share of your estate. that it should come to me. so the father divided the property between them.

after a few days, the younger son collect it all of his for aings and set off distant country, where he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation. when he had freely spent , a severe famine struck that country and he found himself in dire need. out to one himself of the local citizens who sent him to his farm to tend the swine. eat his full to from the pods from which the swine did feed. -- him ae gave him

thing. senses, heis thought, how many of my father's workers have more than enough food to eat but here are my dying for hunger. and go to my father, and i will say to my father, i have sinned against heaven and against you. i no longer deserve to be called your son. ordered hiser servants, quickly, bring the finest robe and put it on him. put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. take the fatted calves and

slaughter it, then let us celebrate with a feast because and son of mine was dead has come to life again. he was lost and has been found. then the celebration that began. [applause] market: -- mark: our second family is here from ukraine. they have a lot to share about the joys and tribulations of raising children with different ability levels.

please welcome them. [applause] >> i am so happy to introduce my family today. i have two sons. ukraine,ally came from but we now live here in the united states. we do not have much but we are indeed blessed by god's grace is and the attention of the mother of god, the virgin mary. we really enjoyed being together as a close-knit ukrainian family and i am so happy to have my two boys in my life. i have received so many blessings enjoys through god for

my sons, especially for boris who is afflicted with cerebral palsy. i do not know where to begin, but i can't say that's where is it is indeed a blessing. an inmate ability to let people know he is happy even though he is sick. his joy through adversity fills us with happiness. let me give you an example. when he was receiving botox injections to relieve a spectrum of extremely painful muscle contractions, he acted as a translator between me and his medical team. they were amazed at his energy and happiness to help those who in turn were helping him. he has tried so hard to work and be independent that tea is an inspiration for all of us. another source of my inspiration and help in raising and understanding boris comes from my mother.

my father died when i is for-years-old, so as through my mother that i learned how to be strong by placing my faith in god. she would always take me to church with her to learn to -- in ourur learned lord and savior and it was she who inspired me to act in faith of the ukrainian catholic church. in ukraine, life was not easy. especially having a handicapped son. and in spite of this, i continued to pray to be strong. we look forward to our sunday

worship in church. god has continue to bless us despite economic difficulties. becameukraine independent and we came to america with great hubs. my husband left the family. it was a struggle for us everything emotionally and financially. hopelessness waited on me. and i remember god had a plan. every sunday, i prayed and church. i prayed, i read the bible, especially the psalms and took vows to pray to the blessed virgin mary and saint philomena to help me care for my boys. then my mother came to america and now is a big help for us. i cannot describe how supportive she is. godn only be thankful to for her. god has really blessed us in many ways. my oldest boy graduated from college and plans to be a priest . i am proud of him. my other son boris is

17-years-old and he is determined not to be limited by his disability. he wants to help create games for children with disabilities similar to his to allow them to be challenged and not limited by their disabilities. in two years, boris will finish high school. he is learning computer coding so we cannot live an independent life. to helps me great hope my brothers realize their dreams and to see the blessings god has given them. while some people might consider boris a burden, i certainly do not. seeing him work so hard inspires me. watching him pray to god and be filled with a faith my mother passed on to me those with

indescribable joy and hope. i have seen many people ask boris to pray for them, and that continues to uplift me. i have nothing but positive hope for his future knowing that the holy spirit will guide him just as he has guided us as a family. holy father, thank you very much for being with us today. bless and pray for us and for all expectant parents who discovered their child will be in the worlds view disabled will see the joy and love at ahead of them. [applause] [applause]

[applause] mark wahlberg: the queen of soul, aretha franklin, started her career as a child singing gospel. her album "amazing grace" was the best-selling gospel album at the time. she is the first female singer to be inducted into the rock 'n roll hall of fame and in 2012,

she joined the gospel hall of fame. please welcome the legendary aretha franklin to the stage. [applause] ♪ [applause] ♪

amazing grace how sweet the sound meetch like

lost, you know i was lost

hallelujah, right now i have been found blind, lord i was blind , lord i, i see

through many dangers, toils, and snares i have already, do you come?hat i have already it was, do you know that it

was, i will tell you it was grace that brought us safe thius far it was not money that kept me

safe that brought me from 2010 to right now it was grace it was grace that amazing grace far brought me safe thus ♪

that brought me so safe brought me ♪ >> ♪ safe >> ♪ guided me around the pitfalls that brought me, that brought me, that brought me safe pray that we shall homeme

i know you will pray ♪ >> ♪pray >> ♪ pray, yes it will homemake meill home ♪ [applause]

i was, i got to say it one more time was, oh yes sir amazing grace ♪ ♪

[applause] mark wahlberg: please come over one more time for the great aretha franklin. please, one more time for the great aretha franklin. [applause] a family are here to share experiences as a jordanian christian family, ministering to others among serious poverty, religious

persecution, and more. please welcome. [applause] >> holy father, we have come here today representing. jordan is a part of the middle east. with me or my wife and our two daughters. youould like to share with our experience as a jordanian christian family. the best way to describe it is christian families currently living in our homeland are our

presence signing against the darkness of destruction, war, killing, and persecution. our family tries to live. the only true answer of the world's problems is jesus christ. the root of our christian -- [applause] >> the root of our christian communities dates back. since then there have been many periods of persecution. for spreading the word of jesus. as always, we rise together in support and love in our families and larger communities. we are minorities but we are like soil which is necessary for food.

the conditions and hardships endured by the christians who have come to jordan have inspired our community. help better serve our brothers and sisters. iraq refugees have sacrificed everything except faith as we recognize we have responsibility, a special calling from the lord to be his witnesses. every single member of our family joins in this. family's church, immaculate conception, is located 35 miles

from the in providing support for the needy and to support the poor. daughter is a leader faith and to be supported and

cared about. our family is truly united in the love of crisis and we know christ andthe -- of we know that his body gives us the strength to thrive in this hostile environment. we share god's love with each can and much as we within the family.

fun.ay and also have thank you, holy father, for your for those struggling. please pray for those who are struggling against violence and war, immigration, lack of resources, and discrimination. please also pray for those who are ministering. may we all share each other's so that these and love may prevail. thank you. and love may prevail. thank you. [applause]

john is theg: st. patron saint of mothers and the unborn. she was the last saint to be canonized by pope john paul ii.

her daughter will join us to read excerpts from her personal letter written by her mother. [applause] rdearest, when i think of ou great, reciprocal love, i can do lord.g but thank the it proves that love is the most beautiful sentiment, that god has given to us. and we will always love each pier as we do now, tro. o, thank you for

everything. i want to tell you all that i feel, all that is in my heart, but i can't. know what mydy feelings are. so you must know how you understand me. , i am sure that you will always make me as happy as i am in nnow . and the lord will listen to your prayers, coming from a heart that has always loved him and served him. pietro, how much i have to learn from you. are such a fine example for me. and i thank you for it.

have got the help and the blessing. we will do all that we can to family where jesus over our affections and desires and actions. , our wedding is just a few days away now. moved to be so near receiving the sacrament of love. god in be working with his creation. in this way, we can give him children who we love and who will serve him. we might be able to be

the wife and mother you have always wanted. itm so because you deserve and i love you so much. you withu and embrace all of my love. [applause]

[applause] mark wahlberg: she is about to celebrate her wedding anniversary with her husband. we are here from nigeria to talk about energy, healing, and forgiveness in marriages and families. please welcome them. [applause] >> i am happy to talk about my

marriage and my family. this is my son jeffrey. and our three other children. their home in nigeria. holy father, -- they are home in nigeria. holy father, my husband and i have a happy family. this is an uphill struggle. at the beginning of our marriage, we waited for fruits of the union. we prayed for fruits of the union. period for intense two reasons. pressuree was so much

from extended family and the community for us to have children. we found out that our we arences are quite -- having issues with differences in our personalities and the way we were raised. because of this, there were tensions. so while the others prayed for children in the marriage, i was more concerned with my happiness, with our happiness fulfillment in the relationship. i started attending daily mass, saying my rosary every day, spending one hour daily before the blessed sacrament, asking god for a way out. my family was supportive, especially my mom. she would always encouraged me with advice that with god, nothing is impossible. thati started attending daily m,

saying my rosary every day, spending one hour most marriagee based on struggles so are needed to work on my own marriage. and alsoe and support the example of their own marriage. my parents have a good marriage. gave me the fortitude and the optimism i needed to work on my marriage. four years into the marriage, we are blessed with a very pretty and strong daughter. holy father, we adored her. weeks, she suddenly took the took ill one- evening, and suddenly she was gone. we were confused.

but god, and his faithfulness and love, brought up so much goodness from this terrible situation. this death gave us life. my husband and i went in search of a priest. we have to really see god for who he is. gradually, we learn to integrate our faith into our daily life. way, we have a better understanding of one another. and happiness gradually came into the relationship. children,have four though along the line we had one that was a stillbirth. children, came from

family and friends. because of theis new culture in which some relatives of marriage are not considered from a supernatural point of view. these children are further demonstration of god's love in as a family so far we prayed together, we attend mass together, we take advantage of teachable moments to find out what the children have gained from the month and the perceptions of everything about life according to their age. we have also made sure that we theme them through, expose

to spiritual formations to give them the strength needed to wade through the tides. toy father, we are so happy have been given this opportunity to speak with you. locations, different locations according to god's will, in our family. locations, -- vocations different according to god's will, in our family. we pray that our children will have different vocations. priesthood and marriage. you are forever in our prayers. [applause]

[applause] ifth wahlberg: our f family are grandparents and great grandparents of 12 children. they are here tuesday speak to the importance of extended families. please welcome them. to speak to the importance of extended families. please welcome them. [applause]

>> we are the gonzalez family. my husband rudy. two of our five children are here. and two ofcarlita, our grandchildren. representing our grandchildren and great-grandchildren. children -- excuse

me -- and now spending time with young ones has been a great responsibility as well as a wonderful joy. rudy and i grew up during a imes.d of trying t the great depression, world war ii, and a social bias that continues to this day. raised in chicago, a city boy, where i was raised in an indian nation. children, we did not know that we were financially poor. we both have a roof over our love and the constant encouragement of terrific parents. and between the two of us we only knew one grandparent. ways wouldr, in what have life been different if we had the older generation to help us grow up?

rudy and i were blessed to become parents, to have the opportunity to guide our children and now our grandchildren. it is challenging as a parent and grandparent, we acquire a great many responsibilities, most welcome, some not. but one aspect we feel very strongly about is as grandparents, we can help support parents by countering some will be destructive influences out in society. we can help teach the next generation what truly matters. our children were raised on or near native american reservations in arizona, which is a very different way and the

and ihan the way rudy grew up. among many native people, the is often usedher" in starting prayers. used in an exalted chief, blessed, hallowed, supreme. in a position of extreme importance in the minds of his people, who seek his wisdom so that they may live in peace and harmony with all who live on mother earth. the wisdom of grandparents can help to minimize in the lives of

the young the many struggles that they have experienced. parents and grandparents must work hard to instill faith in young family members. modeled to be a good role and teach about the importance of faith and how to help cultivate belief in our lord jesus christ. driving family members towards the grace and love of god. and how to grow in relationship with him. we tried to bring peace and harmony within our family. it is not as easy as it may sound, but augmenting our attempts with prayer can help to ease the stress of the responsibilities we face in giving direction. faith, our belief in the existence of our creator, our god has told us through many

difficult times together. through the love of god and of god's church, our faith and determination becomes stronger each and every day. we are far from an ideal family. god, throughace of the sacraments, and with the we continuesaints, to care for our family on the wisdom of grandparents. holy father, we thank you for this blessed opportunity and we ask that you pray for all of us that we might give our families plenty of love until the end of our to helpour society sustain those we care about, and

that our love will be passed to their children, grandchildren, and families beyond. thank you. [applause]

[applause] justrio and rosa celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary. [applause] day are here to talk about the need for families and extended families to trust in god's providence. please welcome --

[applause] in spanish] pleased to introduce you to my wife, rosa. on september 17, 1955 and when the salaries -- in buenos aires, argentina. as we exchanged our valve inside a catholic church, the world we knew outside was being destroyed in a military coup. , we could ceremony hear cast on the streets. immediately following the

ceremony, my new wife and i and are terrified guests fled to our homes on that day as we have done every day in the 60 years since. we place our trust in god. nowsomehow we knew then as that god would guide us to safety. , we along withr theyoung children, left community we loved so much and aireszeri's -- in buenos and immigrated to go back and search of a better life. the move presented many challenges. my wife and i did not speaking a sure french. andtruggled financially work with scarce. adapting to a new culture and a

likeay of life often seen an overwhelming endeavor, but once again we turn to our faith, our parish church welcomed us, and we became an integral part -- it became an integral part of our daily lives. comfort through difficult times, and as a place of celebration. eventually with lots of patience, love, and god's mercy, we built a better life that we saw. in 1968, our family, which now included our youngest child, once again immigrated. this time to the united states.

we immediately and rolled our children and catholic schools to reinforce the guiding principles that we tried to teach at home, and it is those guiding principles which began with an unwavering faith in god that helped our family to cope with life's challenges and tragedies. health scares, addiction to gambling, and the untimely loss are just ain 2013 few of the crises that we have survived as a family in recent years. nightsys and sleepless have been spent praying to god for guidance. however, we have also been fortunate to experience many joys, such as the birth of our

beautiful granddaughters. we thank god every day for the wonder that she brings to our lives. celebrate our i 60 years of marriage, we often think about our long life journey together. we have traveled many rocky obstacles the sometimes it seemed insurmountable, however, we always tried to meet whatever tests of faith were presented to and are proud to say that our greatest a congressman is to , loving,ed a strong catholic family. andy, as in every day past in the future, we look to god for guidance and our firm in our belief that he will bring us to safety.

thank you, holy father. please pray for those who are alone, unsupported by family, and especially those who do not have an understanding of god's love and continuous care for them. [applause]

>> thank you to those who are willing to give their testimony. gladdenedto those who your beauty. beauty leads us to god.

-- and the true takes us to d. god also is truth. truth.and and the witness given in order to serve is good. persons.us good because god's goodness. all that is good. all that is beautiful leads us to god.

[applause] good, god isd is beautiful, god is true. thank you. those who have offered their for all of you as a , a real witness. it is worth being a family. [applause] that the society strong and

solid if it is edified on beauty, goodness, and truth. [applause] , youce a child asked me know that kids ask difficult questions. , what did godher do before creating the world? [laughter] you that i found real difficulty to answer the question. [laughter] i said what i will now say to

you. world, godting the , because god is love. [applause] >> so much love, father, son, , i., it was so overflowing don't know if it was very logical, but you should understand, it was so big this , it had to be poured out of

him. with that love with those out of himself, and then god created the world. god made the marvelous world in which we live. we are destroying it. thing so thetiful bible that god did was the family. and he gave them everything.

he gave them the world. multiply, cultivate the land, multiply and grow. all that love that he meeting creation he gave it and shared it and bestowed upon a family. back, all of the love that god has in him was the beauty that he has in himself and he gave it to the family.

when it is able to open its arms and receive all of that love, the family. it is not an earthly paradise there are still problems. all the love that god gave, .lmost was lost

time, the first , the first influenced -- instance of fratricide, a brother killed another brother. destruction, war, we walk ahead. to decide which path we want to .ake forward

when man and his , god did not abandon them. so great was his love. he began to walk with humanity, his people until the bright and he made the , godst expression of love

, andhim and made a family because it wass a family that had a truly open heart, the doors of their heart .pened mary couldn't believe it. how can this happen. when the angel explained it to a- he finds himself in

surprising situation that he and het understand .ccepts, he'll base , there is aeph born. in which jesus is god plan for their hard to be open. it comes out from him. nobody likes the most? to knock on the doors of

other,s who love each families or bring up their children to grow and help them , who developed .ruth, goodness, and beauty we are celebrating the feats of the family. families have a citizenship which is divine.

the identity that they have is given to them by god. so that within the heart of , truth, goodness, and beauty can truly grow. some of you might say, of you are noter, married. [laughter] families have the fight,ies cora

and sometimes plates can fly. [laughter] and children bring headaches. [laughter] >> and i won't speak about mother and laws. [laughter] >> but in families, there was always light, because the love opened the son of god also that