On the darker side of environmentalism is anti-humanism, viewing humans as a threat to the planet. From this perspective, zero or negative population growth is a worthy goal, and disasters that wipe out millions of people may be a net positive. They argue that the earth’s resources are already taxed to the breaking point, and as a safeguard we should each exercise restraint and limit our family size, to ward off a possible global crisis caused by overpopulation.
Of course, this mindset is in stark contrast to the Torah’s command to Adam and Eve (Bereishit 1:28), “Be fruitful and multiply, fill up the earth and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea, the bird of the sky and every living thing that moves on the earth.” Still, from a strictly mathematical perspective, with the world’s population projected to reach 10 billion within the next 30 years, it’s hard to argue that the world is not becoming overcrowded. Does the commandment have an expiration date?
Fears of the world not being big enough for all of us to share date back to the earliest days of human history. Cain killed his brother Abel because of a dispute over property. view, the world was not large enough for him to share with his only brother, Abel. The generation of the flood was considerably smaller than today’s, yet they suffered from chaos and anarchy. There was rampant thievery and breakdown of the social order. Would slower population growth have forestalled that outcome? Sir Thomas Malthus wrote his landmark essay, “On the Principle of Population,” warning of an impending crisis of overpopulation in 1798, when the world’s population was a 10th of what it is today. Clearly, this concern is hardly new, and the solution (fewer people!) not without historical precedent.
The result of Malthus-inspired terror of overpopulation was the imposition of harsh restrictions on the poor, the very opposite of tzedakah, the principle upon which the world was created. Overpopulation is not the problem, and curtailing the birth of children is not the cure. The course of human history has proven that it is not the number of people in the world that determines whether there is hunger, societal decay or violence. Projections regarding our future ability to sustain a growing population are based only upon the knowledge and technology available today. Imagine scientists 500 years ago attempting to engineer a massive birth control effort based on the medical, agricultural and societal conditions that existed in the 16th century. They could never have foreseen the earth being able to sustain even a fraction of today’s population.
We are suffering not from a population surplus but a shortage—a shortage of people who are dedicated and committed to the welfare of each other and the population at large. Imagine if instead of our obsession with consumerism we instead shifted our focus to more meaningful, spiritual pursuits. We would stop distracting ourselves with our digital devices and instead find comfort in one another. The joy of establishing a new family unit is a symbol of the joy of the future redemption, as the prophet Jeremiah says, “There shall again be heard in this place the sound of mirth and the sound of joy, the sound of a bridegroom and the sound of a bride.” We take joy in the birth of each additional child and commit ourselves to raising our children in a spirit of love and generosity. The view that each child is an incalculable blessing sends a clear message: Every human being is valuable, every human being is welcome here on this planet, and every human being has the capability to contribute to the welfare of the universe.