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.”

  • tartan@lemmy.ml
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    79
    arrow-down
    1
    ·
    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.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      40
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      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.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        18
        arrow-down
        2
        ·
        edit-2
        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.cafe
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          2
          ·
          edit-2
          8 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.