Religious antinatalism: a rare breed

Abstract

Abstract This article examines the relationship between religion and antinatalism – the view that it is wrong to create new sentient beings. Many people reject antinatalism on religious grounds. In this paper, I respond to such a rejection. First, I argue that antinatalism is not logically incompatible with theism. Second, I consider the pronatalist features of some religious traditions – those of Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism. These include religious injunctions to procreate, imitatio Dei , and preservation of the religious community. I also show the limits of these pronatalist features. Third, I provide some examples of religious antinatalist thinking in the four surveyed religions. Finally, I say something about why many religions should be more antinatalist than they are. I do this by showing how central concepts – such as reducing suffering in Buddhism and original sin and hell in Christianity – provide compelling support for antinatalism.