Pope Francis

[Judy]

Ummmmmm ….

Two very different things …

Pope under fire after calling people ‘selfish’ for having pets instead of kids - National | Globalnews.ca

Pope Francis said people choosing to have pets over children 'takes away our humanity.'

globalnews.ca

 

[Andora]

Ummmmmm ….

Two very different things …

Pope under fire after calling people ‘selfish’ for having pets instead of kids - National | Globalnews.ca

Pope Francis said people choosing to have pets over children 'takes away our humanity.'

globalnews.ca

A number of my friends and I who are recovering catholics feel quite personally attacked by this.

Was he feeling ignored or something? Catholic church hadn't done something stupid enough of late? What on earth...

 

[skategal]

Did anyone ask him how many children he has?

 

[Winnipeg]

What a ridiculous assumption and statement. Quite shocking really.

 

[Judy]

A number of my friends and I who are recovering catholics feel quite personally attacked by this.

Was he feeling ignored or something? Catholic church hadn't done something stupid enough of late? What on earth...

I personally choose to laugh. Having a pet and having children = love.

Tons of people have both!

I’m Catholic but not really. if I had to choose I prefer Anglican .. more down to earth.

 

[Judy]

What a ridiculous assumption and statement. Quite shocking really.

That’s what I thought too. Like … why.

 

[Stefanie]

I personally choose to laugh. Having a pet and having children = love.

Tons of people have both!

I’m Catholic but not really. if I had to choose I prefer Anglican .. more down to earth.

You are free to choose.

 

[Cachoo]

Some people are more suited to furbabies instead of human babies. I don't think that is selfish but rather being self aware. We have too many neglected children (and animals) already.

 

[Judy]

Some people are more suited to furbabies instead of human babies. I don't think that is selfish but rather being self aware. We have too many neglected children (and animals) already.

Yes there certainly is. I love kids and I love my dogs. Kids are a huge responsibility! In a lot of ways I feel that it is the most important “job” that parents have. If you don’t want kids that is fair. If you don’t want a pet that’s fair.

I think the Pope was pretty stupid … a ton of Catholics have pets . Just really dumb.

 

[Cachoo]

Yes there certainly is. I love kids and I love my dogs. Kids are a huge responsibility! In a lot of ways I feel that it is the most important “job” that parents have. If you don’t want kids that is fair. If you don’t want a pet that’s fair.

I think the Pope was pretty stupid … a ton of Catholics have pets . Just really dumb.

I do wonder about the context of his remarks. It made me think of a situation about a decade back when people had to quickly clear out of a country (maybe Libya) and there were remarks about North Americans fleeing and making sure they had their dogs while people from other countries were stranded in the airport. I see both sides----you love animals as family companions. You also value human life. But maybe the Pope wasn't thinking about this at all.

 

[Allskate]

Did anyone ask him how many children he has?

A lot of people have responded by asking that! I do wish I could hear Betty White's response.

The Pope doesn't have his own kids, but surely he is aware that there are some really horrible parents out there lacking in "humanity."

 

[MacMadame]

I do wonder about the context of his remarks.

Yes, it's possible they were taken out of context to generate clicks.

It's also possible he's an idiot.

 

[Judy]

Well the Catholic Church doesn’t believe in birth control. So .. women should be pregnant every 1.5 years and not choose a career outside the home.

 

[Judy]

I do wonder about the context of his remarks. It made me think of a situation about a decade back when people had to quickly clear out of a country (maybe Libya) and there were remarks about North Americans fleeing and making sure they had their dogs while people from other countries were stranded in the airport. I see both sides----you love animals as family companions. You also value human life. But maybe the Pope wasn't thinking about this at all.

I love my pups .. they are good for the soul. i also - of course - greatly value human life. I had a great group of kids (before Covid) that would come over to play with my dogs .. I kids. Now 2 out of 3 of the families have their own little dogs.

 

[canbelto]

While it's a little weird, the whole "people want to have a dog more than they want kids" is a big talking point among fundamentalist Christians.

 

[sk8pics]

This was strange to me, too. Didn’t someone ask some years ago if their dog would be with them in heaven, and he said, more or less, yes? Maybe I am misremembering.

Pope Francis is certainly not an idiot, and I do wonder if he was misquoted or taken out of context. I hope so, anyway.

 

[VGThuy]

Maybe he's worried that the population of Catholics will die down. Of course, people from anywhere from any sort of religious background can join the church and convert to Catholicism, and just because you come from practicing Catholic parents doesn't mean you yourself will become Catholic, but I'm sure there's a great number of Catholics who are Catholic because they were raised that way by their family.

 

[screech]

Some people are aromantic, asexual, homosexual, infertile, have health issues, etc so can't naturally have children. Some people are unable to be there for kids mentally, emotionally, physically, financially, etc. Some dislike children. Some have jobs that don't allow them to be effective parents. Personally, I think it's more selfish for a person to bring a child into an unhealthy situation, but that's just me.
Methinks there should be more focus on addressing the issues within the Church than on criticizing peoples family situations.

And speaking of people viewing pets as family, I've always believed that any employer that offers bereavement leave should also include leave for death of a pet. A colleague of mine lost her husband's grandmother in the same year she lost her 18 year old cat. She was permitted 3 days off work for her grandmother-in-law who she had met a handful of in her life, but zero time off for the pet who'd been an important part of her life for almost 2 decades.

 

[Coco]

Someone quote retweeted this quote from Pope Francis with a gif of Brittany Murphy saying to Alicia Silverstone, "You're a virgin who can't drive."

I think I pulled a muscle laughing.

 

[Allskate]

I do wonder about the context of his remarks.

There are lots of articles discussing the Pope's comments, and the one linked in the original post has video. He is urging everyone to have kids and for married couples who can't have biological kids to adopt them. (And he refers to Joseph as an example.) This is the context in which he definitely does make the comments being discussed. His main point may be to encourage procreation and adoption and actual parenting, but this does not change the fact that he definitely did make the comments being discussed.

He points out that there are so many kids needing to be adopted. He pretty much ignores the point that so many of the people who gave birth to those kids in need of adoption were not in a position to be good parents and brought those kids into a world that already is overpopulated. He also ignores the fact that some people should not be adopting because they would not be good parents. Should all those priests who abused children have had or adopted kids? For people who don't want to be parents, isn't it good that they be able to use their time and energy to improve this world in other ways and not bring unwanted children into the world? (Okay, these are rhetorical questions. The Catholic Church has never thought that women should have choice and sees their role as child bearers.)

 

[kwanfan1818]

Someone quote retweeted this quote from Pope Francis with a gif of Brittany Murphy saying to Alicia Silverstone, "You're a virgin who can't drive."

I think I pulled a muscle laughing.

That is one of my favorite all-time movie scenes.

I understand why the Catholic Church is worried about its numbers, but I thought that it was making great headway in Africa, especially the more fundamendalist branch, to compensate for the falling birthrates among first world Catholics.

 

[Cachoo]

That is one of my favorite all-time movie scenes.

I understand why the Catholic Church is worried about its numbers, but I thought that it was making great headway in Africa, especially the more fundamendalist branch, to compensate for the falling birthrates among first world Catholics.

My favorite priest (rip) always said they would have to sell off their vatican trinkets sooner or later. They have vaults of stuff. Maybe it is time.

 

[Allskate]

I understand why the Catholic Church is worried about its numbers, but I thought that it was making great headway in Africa, especially the more fundamendalist branch, to compensate for the falling birthrates among first world Catholics.

Maybe those Catholics aren't contributing as much to the Church's coffers? Also, I don't think it's just about the number of Catholics. I think the Pope genuinely believes the stuff he's saying and it applies to all people, not just Catholics.

 

[kwanfan1818]

All people are considered Catholics or potential Catholics.

 

[Bunny Hop]

The assumption that people with pets but no children consider the pets to be child substitutes really gets on my nerves. I love my cats dearly, but I didn't get them as an alternative to having kids. Yes, I would consider the cats to be part of our family, but as pets, not as fluffy children.

 

[Judy]

The assumption that people with pets but no children consider the pets to be child substitutes really gets on my nerves. I love my cats dearly, but I didn't get them as an alternative to having kids. Yes, I would consider the cats to be part of our family, but as pets, not as fluffy children.

It’s actually amazing how many people are pet people though. My neighbour has a dog, two cats, 6 year old twins and an older daughter. There’s room for her husband too .

 

[Tesla]

I’d trade my husband for a dog.

 

[Bunny Hop]

It’s actually amazing how many people are pet people though.

Which kind of makes the whole thing even more odd. I mean, he's not saying people who have pets as well as children consider the pets to be extra children. Apparently that's only reserved for people who choose not to have children.

 

[MacMadame]

There are definitely people who think their pets are their children. We know this because they say so. But, as far as I can tell, they are in the minority. Plus they often have grown children or they eventually have children of their own and are not worth even commenting on.

 

[gkelly]

What about people who have neither pets nor children?