Just when I think the pope is a closeted secular humanist, he goes and says stupid shit like this.
He's still a lot better than the last Pope
I agree with both quoted sentiments.
I also rather wonder what he'd have to say about people like me who just plain *can't* conceive in the first place (I don't want kids anyway, but, still). I'm on thin ice with the catholic church as far as personhood anyway because of the celiac, lol (men with celiac are actually kinda discouraged from becoming priests because communion wafers are made of wheat, which sort of amazes me). And I mean first and foremost because I'm a woman, obviously (and then also because I converted to atheism years ago).
He would not see you guilty, he would feel sorry for you, I guess. And he most likely would rejoice in seeing you found other ways to help people in this world.
(You having a bed companion out of wedlock would be something he'd frown upon)
My bed companion has so much student loan debt it may never be financially viable for us to get married, even if we're together for years and years. Marriage is a really major legal and financial decision.
(Not that he'd care, but, like, just sayin'.)
Though, really, I'm guessing the pope would also not approve of at least one of the drawers in the bureau next to my bed.
He might also say I ought to look into adoption, which (realistically) I may or may not even be able to pull off if I wanted to. If I went through the right channels and tried for a kid who was (for whatever reason) less traditionally "desirable" to prospective adoptive parents, I probably could, but I'm single, don't make a ton of money, don't have a lot of supports, and have oodles and oodles of issues. I
know I would not make a good parent, but I'm not sure that really matters when you're talking doctrine (or when you're talking adoption criteria, unless you're out-and-out saying so to the people you're working with).