Does Pope Francis Think Adopting Pets Instead Of Raising Children Diminishes Humanity?

Pope Francis caused a stir on Wednesday when he claimed that pet ownership as a substitute for having children “diminishes” humanity.

Pope Francis made the comments to a general audience at the Vatican about Saint Joseph, Jesus’ human father. He noted how Joseph raised Jesus as his son and how parents raised adopted or orphaned children, then pivoted to addressing those who opt for adopting animals instead of raising children.

"We see that people do not want to have children, or just one and no more. And many, many couples do not have children because they do not want to, or they have just one — but they have two dogs, two cats . . . this denial of fatherhood or motherhood diminishes us, it takes away our humanity. And in this way civilization becomes aged and without humanity, because it loses the richness of fatherhood and motherhood. And our homeland suffers, as it does not have children," Pope Francis said.

Pope Francis has often been hailed as one of the more progressive popes.

He has a mixed stance on the rights of members of LGBTQIA2S+ communities, acknowledged that the climate crisis is real, and encouraged people to get vaccinated.

Pope Francis has also acknowledged some of the atrocities committed by the Catholic Church, which includes genocide.

He is known to enjoy the company of animals. The Guardian noted that Pope Francis had made similar comments about pets and parenting in 2014.