Pope Francis laments the decline in parenthood, with many adults choosing pets over children.
The Indonesian president was praised by Pope Francis as an example to all.
Many adults in modern civilization are opting to raise pets rather than children, as Pope Francis has previously criticized.
While traveling through Southeast Asia and the Pacific, CNN reported that Pope Francis discussed the population crisis affecting many parts of the world during his speech in Indonesia.
The Catholic leader told Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo that he is an example for everyone, including all the countries that may prefer to have a cat or a little dog instead of a child.
The president of Indonesia, who leads one of the most populous Muslim nations, chuckled and responded, "That's correct, isn't it?"
The trend of low birthrate in Europe has been a concern for the pontiff, who has supported policies aimed at reversing it.
In a conference in Rome, Pope Francis described Europe as "old, tired, and resigned."
The pope stated that homes are filled with objects but devoid of children, making them sad places. There is an abundance of little dogs and cats, but there is a shortage of children.
In previous years, Pope Francis has addressed this topic in Western civilization.
In 2023, Francis spoke about a woman who asked him to bless her dog, which she referred to as "my baby."
At that time, he said, "I lost my patience and scolded her, stating that many children are hungry and you bring me a dog."
In 2022, the Catholic leader criticized couples who adopt pets instead of children as "selfish" in an effort to address the "demographic winter" facing the West.
"The pope stated during a general audience on parenthood that he observed a form of selfishness, where some individuals do not desire to have children and instead have pets to fulfill that role."
Planet Chronicle’ Peter Aitken contributed to this report.
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