--- description: It is not the mom of seven who should be scolded for "irresponsibility" title: The Pope Is Wrong on Contraception image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt07df272108a7dec5/69877abccd1bbafd596f4bbd/pope-francis-catholics.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Ideas](/section/ideas/) ## Ideas Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Pope Francis](/tag/pope-francis/) ## Pope Francis Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Stop Breeding Like Rabbits? The Pope Misses the Point on Contraception by [Emily Rauhala](/author/emily-rauhala/) ## Emily Rauhala Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 20, 2015 10:00 AM CUT  Pope Francis adresses journalists sitting onboard a plane during his trip back to Rome, on Jan. 19, 2015. Pope Francis adresses journalists sitting onboard a plane during his trip back to Rome, on Jan. 19, 2015.Giuseppe Cacace—AFP/Getty Images by [Emily Rauhala](/author/emily-rauhala/) ## Emily Rauhala Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 20, 2015 10:00 AM CUT On his flight back to Rome on Monday, Pope Francis [offered](http://time.com/3673991/pope-francis-contraception-philippines-asia-like-rabbits/ "undefined") the press corps some friendly advice on family planning. During his recent travels in the Philippines, he said, he met a mother who risked her life to bear seven children. Chiding her “irresponsibility,” he said the Catholic Church’s prohibition on modern contraception does not mean large families are a must. “Some think, excuse me if I use the word, that in order to be good Catholics, we have to be like rabbits,” he said. “But no.” Now, I can’t argue with the Pope on matters of doctrine — that’s his specialty. But in the Philippines, the church’s stance on “artificial” contraception is also a [national political issue](http://world.time.com/2012/12/17/culture-wars-after-a-decade-of-debate-the-philippines-passes-reproductive-health-bill/ "undefined"). And its opposition to the use of things like birth-control pills and condoms is a matter of public health and human rights. From that perspective, his decree is deeply problematic. The Philippines’ Catholic hierarchy has [fought long and hard](http://world.time.com/2012/02/21/when-a-country-cracks-down-on-contraception-grim-lessons-from-the-philippines/ "undefined") to restrict access to prophylactics. Over the past few decades, as most countries embraced family planning, the Philippines has moved in the opposite direction, [discouraging](http://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1812250,00.html "undefined") the use of contraception and prohibiting abortion under any circumstance. They cast condom use as anti-Catholic and anti-Filipino, insisting that couples ought to use “natural methods.” That means abstinence — or abstinence on all but a woman’s least fertile days. (I once got a [briefing](http://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2032491,00.html "undefined") on this from a bishop; it was awkward.) ### 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 Opposition from the church, particularly the influential Catholic Bishops Conference, kept the country’s [family-planning bill](http://world.time.com/2012/12/17/culture-wars-after-a-decade-of-debate-the-philippines-passes-reproductive-health-bill/ "undefined") on the shelves for more than a decade. Yet the Holy See is at odds with the stated preferences of Filipinos. Research suggests that most support voluntary family planning, and surveys show an unmet need, meaning a large number of women would like to control the number and timing of their pregnancies but can’t. That gap is highest (about 25%) among [poor women](http://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1812250,00.html "undefined"), who, for instance, might be less able to afford pills or condoms, or may be less educated on their use. The antiprophylactic rhetoric is also at odds with what we know about family planning in terms of public health. As social policy, abstinence does not work. Multiple studies [show](http://www.wpro.who.int/reproductive%5Fhealth/data/en/ "undefined") that without access to affordable, modern methods of contraception, the number of unplanned or unwanted pregnancies rises, as do rates of sexually transmitted infections and unsafe abortions. ([Here](http://reproductiverights.org/document/imposing-misery-the-impact-of-manilas-contraception-ban-on-women-and-families "undefined") is a telling case study from Manila.) Finally, whether she chose to have seven children or did not have other options, the woman Pope Francis met — and all others — are entitled to make their own decisions about reproduction and reproductive health without coercion, danger or disrespect. “Irresponsibility” is insisting on abstinence at women’s expense. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3674155/pope-francis-contraception-catholic-rabbits-comment/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3674155/pope-francis-contraception-catholic-rabbits-comment/"},"headline":"Stop Breeding Like Rabbits? 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