Fresh off his controversial comments about free speech concerning the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, Pope Francis turned his attention to family issues.

“The family is threatened by growing efforts on the part of some to redefine the very institution of marriage,” says @Pontifex

In Manila, capital of the Philippines and the country’s second largest city, the pope reaffirmed his commitment to traditional marriage, speaking to the crowd about his concern for the “ideological colonization of the family,” which many took as a swipe at gay marriage.

The Vatican later confirmed that marriage was on the pope’s mind.

“The family is threatened by growing efforts on the part of some to redefine the very institution of marriage, by relativism, by the culture of the ephemeral, by a lack of openness to life,” Francis said. “These realities are increasingly under attack from powerful forces, which threaten to disfigure God’s plan for creation.”

The family is the greatest treasure of any country. Let us all work to protect and strengthen this, the cornerstone of society. — Pope Francis (@Pontifex) January 16, 2015

The pope also went on to defend the Catholic Church’s views on contraceptive use. “[He] also issued a strong defense of Pope Paul VI’s controversial 1968 encyclical Humanae Vitae, which upheld the church’s traditional ban on birth control,” reported Crux.

“He had the strength to defend openness to life at a time when many people were worried about population growth,” Francis said.

Francis’ comments came amid heated debate in the Philippines. The Catholic Church is fighting the government over contraceptives, according to The Economic Times.

Last October, during the Synod of Bishops, many progressive church-watchers were hopeful for a more liberal lurch. They believed Francis would support friendlier language toward gays and the divorced.