‘Intelligent People Have Kids’: Couple Choose Faith Over Contraception, Give Birth to 9 Boys and 1 Girl

Twenty-three years ago, a young couple grounded in faith chose natural family planning over contraception, welcoming nine sons and one daughter—and a huge, happy household where God and virtue are honored. Ryan Topping, 46, and his wife, Anna Topping, 45, live in Edmonton, Canada, with their 10 children—their “10 little universes in the house.” Mr. Topping is a published author, professor of theology, and director of the Benedict XVI Institute at Newman Theological College in Edmonton, Alberta. Mrs. Topping, a former English and Math teacher, is a homemaker and homeschooler. The couple met at a small Christian college on the Canadian prairies and lived in a “close-knit campus community” for two years before they started courting....