Pope Francis Praises Indonesians For Having 5 Kids Over Dogs

On Wednesday, during the first stop of his four-nation tour of Asia, Pope Francis commended the people of Indonesia for maintaining larger families, a contrast to the growing global trend of smaller households and the rise of pet ownership over child-rearing.

The 87-year-old pontiff, speaking in Jakarta alongside Indonesian President Joko Widodo, expressed his admiration for the country’s family values, remarking, “And your country…has families with three, four or five children that keep moving forward, and this is reflected in the age levels of the country.”

His comments, which highlighted Indonesia’s family-oriented culture, came with a lighthearted observation about other countries that have adopted different priorities.

“Keep it up, you’re an example for everyone, for all the countries that maybe, and this might sound funny, (where) these families prefer to have a cat or a little dog instead of a child,” Pope Francis said, turning to Widodo with a chuckle.

The pope’s remarks echo similar sentiments he shared earlier this year at a conference in Rome, where he raised concerns about the demographic crisis affecting Italy and Europe. At that event, he lamented that homes in some regions have become “sad places” due to a lack of children, while the number of pets such as dogs and cats continues to rise.

“Homes are filled with objects and emptied of children, becoming very sad places. There is no shortage of little dogs, cats, these are not lacking. There is a lack of children,” he had noted.

Indonesia, which currently enjoys a higher birth rate than many Western nations, faces a slowly declining trend in its fertility rate. Despite this, the country remains an example of larger family units, as Pope Francis emphasized, contrasting it with the shrinking family sizes observed in other parts of the world.