Seth Udinski, FISM News
On Wednesday, Pope Francis I delivered a statement to highlight the necessity and importance of parenthood in a generation that is becoming more calloused to the idea of raising children.
The Bishop of Rome brought attention to the fact that many young people are prone to avoid having children and will instead get a pet. He said that kind of attitude diminishes the sacred honor of raising children.
The pope said in his statement,
The other day, I was talking about the demographic winter that we have today … many couples do not have children because they do not want to, or they have just one — but they have two dogs, two cats. Yes, dogs and cats take the place of children. Yes, it’s funny, I understand, but it is the reality, and this denial of fatherhood and motherhood diminishes us, takes away humanity…It is more risky to deny fatherhood, or to deny motherhood, be it physical and the spiritual. A man and a woman who voluntarily do not develop a sense of fatherhood and motherhood are missing something fundamental, important. Think about this, please.
There is nothing inherently sinful about having pets, but Francis’ charge to young couples does raise awareness about the growing denial of parenthood among today’s young adults, a trend that has coincided with the spread of legalized abortion.
Statistics show that in 1960, the average number of children per American family was just under 4. That number has dropped to just over 1 child per household in the last two years. Some sources even argue that the average number of children per household in 2021 was less than 1.