Pope says starting a family in Italy requires ‘titanic effort’

By Giovanni Legorano

ROME (AA) – Creating a family in Italy is becoming a “titanic effort,” Pope Francis said on Friday, warning there is little support for the youth who want to have children.

Speaking at a conference in Rome on the demographic crisis, the pontiff said only the rich can afford to have the freedom of choosing how to shape their lives thanks to their own resources.

“Not only is this unfair, but it is also humiliating,” the pope said. “Feeling lonely and forced to rely only on one’s own means is dangerous. It means slowly eroding the collective life of a community and resigning to a solitary life.”

The pope also said the new generations grow up feeling a sense of uncertainty and fear because they perceive that they will have to shoulder the burden of having children alone.

He also pointed at the role of women who are often forced to choose between having children or having a career, saying they also often must care for the elderly or other people needing assistance.

Like other Western countries, Italy has been afflicted by the issue of a shrinking population for years, recording declining birth rates for more than a decade.

The Italian right-wing government headed by Giorgia Meloni has pledged to enact policies to help families have more children.

Speaking at the same conference, Meloni said women will not be free as long as they are forced to give up their jobs to have children.

“The task of the state is to create favorable conditions for families, the (private) initiative, development, and employment,” she said.