“Denying fatherhood and motherhood makes us lesser. It takes away our humanity.”
Preferring to have pets over children is “a form of selfishness”, according to Pope Francis.
While discussing the topic of parenthood during a general audience at the Vatican on Wednesday (5 January), the pontiff said that owning pets instead of raising kids “takes away our humanity”.
“Today we see a form of selfishness,” Pope Francis said.
“People don’t want to have children. Maybe they’ll want one child and not more than that.
“Many couples don’t have any children because they don’t want any or at least no more than one child.
“But they’ll have two dogs, two cats. Yes, cats and dogs are a substitution for children.
“Yes, it’s funny I understand but it is the truth.”
Saint Joseph, you who loved Jesus with fatherly love, be close to the many children who have no family and who long for a daddy and mommy. Support the couples who are unable to have children, help them to discover, through this suffering, a greater plan. #GeneralAudience
— Pope Francis (@Pontifex) January 5, 2022
The Pope than said denying fatherhood and motherhood makes people “lesser”.
“It takes away our humanity so our population gets older and less humane because we lose the wealth of parenthood and our country suffers,” he told the Vatican.
Pope Francis also said that couples unable to have children for biological reasons should consider adoption.
“How many children in the world are waiting for someone to take care of them,” he stated.
“Having a child is always a risk, either naturally or by adoption. But it is riskier not to have them.”
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