While Catholics generally are prone to religious switching, Black Catholics have the highest rates. Only 54 percent of U.S. Black Catholics who were raised in the faith remain so as adults.

“It is a risk, yes: having a child is always a risk, either naturally or by adoption,” Pope Francis said. ”But it is riskier not to have them.”

The plan could result in the possible shutdown of churches and schools as the archdiocese responds to a decline in the number of priests and a shift in parishioners.

In April the Census Bureau estimated that from 2010 to 2020, the U.S. population grew at the slowest rate since the 1930s and at the second-slowest rate in the nation’s history.

A more welcoming society for babies, children and families must work on many levels. Catholics should be leading that charge.

The Covid-19 pandemic and skepticism of the federal government are forcing Latino leaders to get creative in promoting this year's census, reports J.D. Long-García.