Ein bösartig Angriff.

Why Catholics?

The pope speaks about Catholics, I suppose.

[Daphne – No, he doesn’t. He has spoken about all manner of things affecting people in general, whatever religion they are, or no religion at all.]

He can’t tell anyone what kind of parenthood one should adopt can he?

That would amount to undue intrusion into one’s private life?

[Daphne – Wrong. Minors are involved, therefore the law comes into play. You can’t decide whether or not to send your children to school, whether or not to feed them properly, whether or not to ill-treat them, whether or not to allow them access to friends and a social life.]

The responsible parenthood the pope was referring to, does not fall under a law.

There are no laws regulating the number of children parents should procreate, unless you’re in China.

Being responsible parents means that the heterosexual couple would not have more children than it can support, for example.

Another example of responsible parenthood would be that an old couple should preferably not have children which it won’t be able to care for when they grow up.

I hope you understand my explanation.

[Daphne – That has nothing to do with religion. If individuals need a pope to tell them that, or religious guidelines, they have problems which no religion can address (or law). The fundamental problem with old parents is not that they won’t be around to bring up their children. They will, of course, be around for that part of their children’s lives. In fact, that is exactly the problem. Sometimes, a missing parent is better than a useless one.]

Talk of a sense of priorities.

[Daphne – Why should rabbit breeders, German or otherwise, pronounce themselves on religion or morality? They pronounce them on rabbits.]

[Daphne – Why Catholics, in particular? Everybody who has children should be a responsible parent. For a start, there are laws against being an irresponsible parent.]

It is none of their damn business; they are not paying for the upkeep of those children themselves.