Italy’s birth rate, already one of the lowest in the world, has been falling steadily for about 15 years and reached a record low last year.

Italy’s birth rate, already one of the lowest in the world, has been falling steadily for about 15 years and reached a record low last year.

Pope Francis is stepping up his campaign to urge Italians to have children, calling for long-term policies to help families and warning that the country’s demographic crisis was threatening the future.

“The number of births is the first indicator of the hope of a people,” Francis told an annual gathering of pro-family groups on Friday.

“Without children and young people, a country loses its desire for the future.”

  • @Carvex@lemmy.worldEnglish
    122•8 months ago

    Without a future or desire to live, why would we have kids? Why are we listening to an 80 year old male virgin in a dress who represents a fairy tale and participated in covering up the rapes of children around the world?

  • @tartan@lemmy.mlEnglish
    82•8 months ago

    Lol. Will the church spend even a tiny fraction of its wealth to help families? No? Didn’t think so. Get fucked🖕

    • @SkyezOpen@lemmy.worldEnglish
      42•8 months ago

      You expect the successor to the most humble dude in history to not carry a gold staff? Sounds like heresy.

      • @Zombiepirate@lemmy.worldEnglish
        17•8 months ago

        Dunno if I’d call the guy who says he’s a literal god the most humble dude in history.

        Of course it’s questionable if he did indeed make that claim (if he even really existed), but the Pope certainly believes that he did.

        • @DragonTypeWyvern@literature.cafeEnglish
          2•7 months ago

          Jesus almost certainly existed, Tacitus refers to his cult and execution and he was not a fan of the weirdo Jewish cannibal cult or their growing popularity in Rome.

          Everything else is a bit more in question.

          • @Zombiepirate@lemmy.worldEnglish
            3•7 months ago

            Tacitus refers to Christians, which doesn’t necessarily mean that Jesus existed if he was an amalgamation of various apocalyptic prophets; there were many mystery cults at the time who had a legendary founder.

            I think the chances are pretty good that he did exist, but it’s not a foregone conclusion.

            • @DragonTypeWyvern@literature.cafeEnglish
              3•7 months ago

              Tacitus explicitly refers to a “Christus” crucified by Pilate and the cult followers he gave his name to, “Chrestianos,” distinct but related to Judaism. If there is a problem with citing him as proof of Jesus’s historical reality it’s that he doesn’t tell us where he heard about “Christus,” and might just be reporting the claims of the cult without having bothered to see if Prefect Pilate actually executed a random Hebrew cult leader for treason.

              Of course, by the time Tacitus wrote he might just not have bothered, rebelling against Rome and getting executed for it is just kind of what Hebrews did at the time.

  • @nikaaa@lemmy.worldEnglish
    47•8 months ago

    “The number of births is the first indicator of the hope of a people,” Francis told an annual gathering of pro-family groups on Friday.

    Hope comes first, births comes second.

    You can’t fake an indicator and hope for the situation to improve.

    • Null User ObjectEnglish
      23•8 months ago

      And even if his statement were correct, he’s got the cause and effect completely backwards.

  • GranixoEnglish
    27•8 months ago

    They got entire families coming from both the south and the east. 🇿🇦🇵🇸

    LET THEM IN.

  • @SpitzspotEnglish
    27•8 months ago

    Dating pool shrinking, Pontiff?

  • @lazylion_ca@lemmy.caEnglish
    19•7 months ago

    “Without children and young people, a country loses its desire for the future.”

    Bout 30 years too late for that, old man. I grew up with that hopelessness. Between the climate and the economy, the damage is done. Gonna need more than a tax break to change course.

    But hey, it’s nice to see that he’s not completely oblivious.