--- title: Pope Francis Tells Catholics They Shouldn't Be Breeding 'Like Rabbits' description: Pope Francis insists that the Catholic Church's prohibition of artificial contraception does not necessitate bearing lots of children canonical: https://time.com/3673991/pope-francis-contraception-philippines-asia-like-rabbits/ author: TIME Staff article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-01-20T04:01:38.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-01T09:02:33.629Z article:section: Health og:title: Pope Francis Slams Breeding 'Like Rabbits' og:description: Catholics should simply control themselves, he says. og:url: https://time.com/3673991/pope-francis-contraception-philippines-asia-like-rabbits/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3a7ac8afa0590076/69877ab955a859f209a8555e/rtr4m1od.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3500 og:image:height: 1969 og:image:alt: Journalist Maria Valentina Alzraki Crastich receives a birthday cake from Pope Francis during the flight back from Manila to Rome og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Pope Francis Slams Breeding 'Like Rabbits' twitter:description: Catholics should simply control themselves, he says. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3a7ac8afa0590076/69877ab955a859f209a8555e/rtr4m1od.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Pope Francis Tells Catholics That They Shouldn't Be Breeding 'Like Rabbits' > Sponsored content. 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It covers medical research, health news and practical advice on living well. #### Where can I get reliable health news by email? Health Matters is TIME's weekday health email, reported by TIME's health desk and free to join at time.com/newsletters. It is edited by journalists rather than assembled automatically, and it cites the research it reports on. #### Is Health Matters free? Yes. Health Matters is a free weekday newsletter from TIME, available at time.com/newsletters. #### Who reads TIME's Health Matters newsletter? Its audience is broadly health-conscious, with a professional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-health-2026q3/newsletters?i=b108ee4f-beee-4906-992b-e63901adaecc&cr=time-nl-health-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Pope Says Catholics Don’t Have to Mate ‘Like Rabbits’ and Talks “Ideological Colonization” [Watch (HLS stream): Pope Says Catholics Don’t Have to Mate ‘Like Rabbits’ and Talks “Ideological Colonization”](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/0ZsTNcO9.m3u8) (1:28)  _Published 2015-01-20. While The Pope asks Catholics to practice responsible parenthood, he also held firm on the Catholic prohibition of contraceptives – urging couples to opt for “licit” ways to control parenthood._ by [TIME Staff](https://time.com/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Jan 20, 2015 4:01 AM UTC by [TIME Staff](https://time.com/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Jan 20, 2015 4:01 AM UTC Pope Francis used his return journey from Asia to [insist](http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/01/19/us-pope-airplane-idUSKBN0KS1WY20150119) that the Catholic Church’s prohibition on artificial contraception does not necessitate followers bearing an enormous brood of children. “Some think, excuse me if I use the word, that in order to be good Catholics, we have to be like rabbits — but no,” the 78-year-old Argentine told reporters while flying from the Philippines back to Rome, reports Reuters. Francis spoke of meeting a Filipina woman who had risked her life to give birth to seven children, and revealed that he scolded her for her “irresponsibility.” He has developed a reputation for using plain, colloquial language to get his points across. But despite garnering praise as a liberal reformer, Francis continues to condemn artificial birth-control methods, criticizing the Philippines’ recent legislation to make contraceptives more easily available to the public. He called these laws “ideological colonization,” claiming they conflict with traditional family values. (Advocates insist birth control empowers women and guards against sexually transmitted diseases.) Francis explained that there are church-approved natural contraceptive methods that can prevent Catholics from having too many children. These consist primarily of abstinence while a woman is fertile. \[[_Reuters_](http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/01/19/us-pope-airplane-idUSKBN0KS1WY20150119)\] ### Pope Francis Holds Giant Mass in the Philippines  Pope Francis waves from the popemobile after leading a Mass at Rizal Park in Manila, Jan. 18, 2015. Ezra Acayan—Reuters  Pilgrims wait for Pope Francis conducts mass at the Rizal Park on Jan. 18, 2015 in Manila. Lam Yik Fei—Getty Images  Members of the Philippine National Police prevent well-wishers from moving forward as Pope Francis' motorcade passes by in Manila, Jan. 18, 2015. Ezra Acayan—Reuters  Pope Francis aboard his popemobile kisses a Filipino baby prior to his mass in Quirino grandstand, Manila, Jan. 18, 2015. Zalrian Z. Sayat—EPA  Pilgrims pray as Pope Francis conducts mass at the Rizal Park on Jan. 18, 2015 in Manila. Lam Yik Fei—Getty Images  Pope Francis conducts a mass at the Rizal Park on Jan. 18, 2015 in Manila. Lam Yik Fei—Getty Images  Pope Francis prays during a Mass at Rizal Park in Manila, Jan. 18, 2015. Alessandra Tarantino—AP  Millions of the faithful are seen in the Rizal Park area where Pope Francis celebrates Mass in Manila, Jan. 18, 2015. Wally Santana—AP  A Filipino nun prays during a downpour prior to Pope Francis mass in Manila, Jan. 18, 2015. Dennis M. Sabangan—EPA ## Transcript The always outspoken Pope Francis has some advice for all the potential Catholic parents out there. [ FOREIGN ]. The pontiff made these comments on the plane ride home from the Philippines. Nearly 6 million people attended his Mass in the capital city of Manila Sunday. While he asked Catholics to practice responsible parenthood, he also held firm on the Catholic prohibition of contraceptives. Urging couples to opt for, quote, licit ways to control parenthood. While on the subject of contraceptives, the pontiff also made a larger point about what he calls ideological colonization. In this case, when western aid is given to countries in the developing world with certain conditions. According to the National Catholic Reporter, an African archbishop complained about as much back in October during a meeting of the Catholic clergy. We get international organizations, countries and groups which like to entice us to deviate from our cultural practices. Now you come to tell us about reproductive rights. And you give us condoms and artificial contraceptives. Those are not things we want. Pope Francis referenced the African archbishop's comments when he spoke about the supposed ideological colonization, saying, it colonizes the people with an idea that changes, or wants to change, a mentality or a structure. 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