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Pope Francis to Moms: It’s OK to Breast-Feed in Public

By Josephine McKenna, Religion News Service
Photo via Elena Stepanova / Shutterstock / RNS
A mother and baby breast-feeding. Photo via Elena Stepanova / Shutterstock / RNS
Jan 12, 2015
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While baptizing 33 babies in the Sistine Chapel on Jan. 11, Pope urged mothers to breast-feed their infants if they were hungry.

“Mothers, give your children milk — even now,” Francis said. “If they cry because they are hungry, breast-feed them, don’t worry.”

The pope departed from his prepared text, which included the phrase “give them milk,” and inserted the Italian term “allattateli,” which means “breast-feed them.”

The celebration took place to mark the day Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist in the waters of the Jordan River.

Francis also asked the parents gathered to remember the poor mothers around the world.

“Let us thank the Lord for the gift of milk, and we pray for those mothers — there are so many, unfortunately — who are not able to give their children food to eat,” he said.

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A mother and baby breast-feeding. Photo via Elena Stepanova / Shutterstock / RNS
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