Three homeless men, one of them carrying his dog, helped Pope Francis celebrate his 77th birthday Tuesday, joining him for Mass and breakfast and presenting him with a bouquet¹ of sunflowers.

 

The men live on the street in the Rome neighborhood just outside the Vatican's walls and were invited by the Holy See（罗马教廷） official in charge of alms-giving to attend the Mass, which Francis celebrates daily at the hotel where he lives on Vatican City grounds.

 

The Vatican said Francis also invited his household help to join him in a "family-like" atmosphere, and he spoke² of them one by one during his homily（说教，训诫）.

 

Francis, who is making history as one of the more informal and down-to-earth popes, struck a modest note as he reflected on people's roles in the world. "Let the Lord write our history," he said in his homily.

 

After Mass, all ate breakfast with Francis at the hotel dining room.

 

The Vatican, which initially³ said four homeless people joined Francis, later clarified that three men had taken part, all from Eastern Europe: the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia. The Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano reported that they were asked: "Would you like to come to Pope Francis' birthday party?" and that the surprise guests brought a bouquet of sunflowers to offer the pope.

 

Francis had already blown out the candles on his birthday cake, presented to him on Saturday by children at the Vatican. But another present awaits him: A delegation⁴ from his favorite Argentine soccer team, San Lorenzo, will give him a replica⁵ of their championship trophy⁶.

 

Vatican officials said no fixed⁷ time was set for the papal meeting with officials and at least one player from the team, which clinched⁸ the Argentine championship on Sunday. The delegation flew from Argentina on Monday night on a private plane, to arrive in Rome on Tuesday.

 

"Arriving on such as special day, like the 77th birthday of the pope, this meeting seems made for God," said the team's vice⁹ president Marcelo Tinelli, shortly before departure.

 

The pope also got an unexpected birthday gift on Tuesday, named Person of the Year by The Advocate, a US magazine for the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender communities. The magazine cited the pope's "Who am I to judge" comment about gays. Francis was also named Person of the Year by Time magazine last week.

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