All posts tagged: Pope

What is an encyclical? Inside Pope Leo’s urgent warning about AI and the ‘culture of power’

What is an encyclical? Inside Pope Leo’s urgent warning about AI and the ‘culture of power’

Published by Sam Flores

(RNS) — Like the encyclicals of his predecessors across the last 135 years, Pope Leo XIV’s “Magnifica Humanitas: On Safeguarding the Human Person in the Time of Artificial Intelligence,” addresses the Roman Catholic Church to a present crisis facing all of humanity. Leo reminds us that the church “walks alongside humanity” and so the church cannot be “a stranger to the forces shaping society.” For these reasons, Magnifica Humanitas comes not just as a message for Catholics but, just as popes before him have offered their encyclicals, as a reflection for “all men and women of goodwill.” For Catholics, an encyclical letter is an official teaching document. An encyclical defines doctrine, the things that Catholics believe. Popes have been writing them for centuries. Initially, encyclicals were letters directed only to bishops and they were intended to bind the whole Catholic Church together under a coherent, shared teaching. Often, the teaching related to internal theological matters such as the duties of bishops or the interpretation of Scripture. With Pope Leo XIII in 1891, the church began …

Pope Leo sees threat to humanity in technological arms race

Pope Leo sees threat to humanity in technological arms race

Published by skeptic

In the first landmark publication of his papacy, Pope Leo XIV has addressed recent advances in artificial intelligence by focusing on the threat it poses to workers, social justice and “the dignity of persons”. Presenting his first papal encyclical, “Magnifica Humanitas” (“Magnificent Humanity”), at the Vatican on May 25, Leo declared: “Artificial intelligence needs to be disarmed.” In the document – comprising around 42,300 words in its English translation – the pope writes: “To disarm does not mean rejecting technology, but preventing it from dominating humanity.” Encyclicals are exceptionally important papal documents that respond to the most pressing social issues of the time. Typically written as letters to all bishops and archbishops, they have become a crucial vehicle for disseminating the theology and political commitments of the Roman Catholic Church across the world. Pope Leo XIV signing his first encyclical on May 15 2026. Video: Vatican News. Leo chose to sign his first encyclical on May 15 2026, the exact anniversary of Pope Leo XIII’s “Rerum novarum” (“Of new things”). This famous encyclical, which responded …

As A.I. Fever Rises in Silicon Valley, Pope Leo Has a Few Words

As A.I. Fever Rises in Silicon Valley, Pope Leo Has a Few Words

Published by skeptic

Silicon Valley has always had messianic dreams, dating back to the days when computers filled entire rooms. One of the oldest industry jokes has a programmer asking a computer, “Is there a God?” The computer answers: “There is now.” The Whole Earth Catalog, a proto-hacker compendium of tools that deeply influenced Steve Jobs, proclaimed, “We are as gods and might as well get good at it.” By investing hundreds of billions of dollars in artificial intelligence, tech leaders are signaling that those early dreams have been fulfilled. Next stop, transcendence. Just as the new religion of A.I. seemed to be solidifying its control over mankind’s destiny, however, a new voice is being heard on the other side of the world. Its message to the tech industry: Slow down. Elevate the human. Machines are not gods. Pope Leo XIV, the first American pope, published with great ceremony on Monday his first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, or “Magnificent Humanity.” The 42,300-word policy statement is respectful and named no names, but is at heart a sharp rebuke to Silicon …

Pope Leo Warns of Risks From A.I. in 42,300-Word Encyclical

Pope Leo Warns of Risks From A.I. in 42,300-Word Encyclical

Published by Sam Flores

Pope Leo XIV on Monday set out a sweeping vision for corporate executives, politicians and individuals who will shape and be shaped by the future of artificial intelligence, warning leaders to safeguard humanity from A.I.’s most disruptive effects. Leo’s declaration came in the form of a papal encyclical, an open letter to “all people of good will” that ran to roughly 42,300 words in its English version. It outlined his desire to protect human dignity and agency in an age in which technology threatens to replace humans in many professional and social roles. He presented it alongside Christopher Olah, a co-founder of Anthropic, a major A.I. developer, in a symbolic gesture of dialogue between leaders of the spiritual and technological worlds. While emphasizing that “technology should not be considered, in itself, as a force antagonistic to humanity,” he wrote that “the pursuit of greater profits cannot justify choices that systematically sacrifice jobs.” Among other things, Leo called for: government regulation of the private companies that are driving the development of A.I. protection and retraining for …

Iran war; Ebola; California tank; Pope Leo on AI : NPR

Iran war; Ebola; California tank; Pope Leo on AI : NPR

Published by Sam Flores

Good morning. You’re reading the Up First newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox, and listen to the Up First podcast for all the news you need to start your day. Today’s top stories President Trump and other administration officials are managing expectations about an imminent agreement to end the war in Iran. Iran has not officially responded to the proposed agreement, but semi-official news agencies suggest that disagreements over “one or two” issues are jeopardizing the potential deal. After speaking with the leaders of several Gulf countries and Israel on Saturday, Trump said the U.S. and Iran have “largely negotiated” a memorandum of understanding to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. But on Sunday, he said in a series of social media posts that the U.S. would not rush into an agreement. Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said that if a deal is reached, discussions on nuclear issues with the U.S. would commence over a 60-day period. Senior official Hossein Nooshabadi said that 60-day period would start after a 30-day initial agreement regarding the Strait. …

Pope Leo’s Unsettling Vision of the AI Future

Pope Leo’s Unsettling Vision of the AI Future

Published by Daniella Wilson

The Vatican, as one aphorism puts it, tends to “think in centuries.” But Pope Leo XIV seems intent on changing that, moving with remarkable speed to publish his first encyclical today, Magnifica Humanitas, “on safeguarding the human person in the time of artificial intelligence.” Leo has managed to produce a major teaching document on AI while college students are still booing commencement speeches about how the technology will change the world. Compare that with his 19th-century namesake, Pope Leo XIII, who didn’t publish an encyclical about the Industrial Revolution until more than a century after it started. In Magnifica Humanitas (“Magnificent Humanity”), Leo seeks to counterbalance alarm with hope. He composes a long and vivid list of dangers posed by AI, but insists that the technology is a “gift that can alleviate suffering and open up new possibilities”—as long as it’s ordered by humane values rather than monopolistic interests. As for the specific advantages that AI might yield, however, Leo is largely silent. His expressions of alarm are detailed and expansive; his expressions of hope, …

Pope Leo’s AI Encyclical Has Landed. It Offers Wisdom for Big Tech, Goverments and You

Pope Leo’s AI Encyclical Has Landed. It Offers Wisdom for Big Tech, Goverments and You

Published by skeptic

Since his earliest days in the job, Pope Leo XIV has made talking about AI a priority of his papacy. On Monday, he released his first encyclical under the name Magnifica Humanitas (which translates to magnificent humanity) — a powerful 42,300-word document calling for regulation of the technology and a moral framework that protects humanity for generations to come. The 70-year-old American Pope, who is a mathematician by training, was elected to the papacy in May 2025 and has made “the safeguarding of the human person in the time of artificial intelligence,” as the encyclical’s subhead reads, a central tenet of his first year in the role. The document’s publication arrives at a moment that many are already comparing to the industrial revolution in terms of its impact on our work and ways of life. AI companies including OpenAI and Anthropic are growing and improving the capabilities of their models at extraordinary rates, stoking the fires of the ongoing debate about whether AI will be be more beneficial or harmful to society. Amid all of …

Pope Leo delivers on a people-first vision for AI

Pope Leo delivers on a people-first vision for AI

Published by Sam Flores

(RNS) — This spring, something new emerged on commencement stages across the country. Speakers who invoked artificial intelligence were met with boos and groans from graduates who sense, correctly, that the technology isn’t being oriented toward what matters most about being human. That unease isn’t confined to graduates, and it isn’t a rejection of technology. It cuts across political divides and reflects a question many Americans are asking: Who is AI for, and who is it leaving behind?  On Monday (May 25), Pope Leo XIV offered an answer. “Magnifica Humanitas,” his landmark teaching on artificial intelligence, provides not just a diagnosis of what’s at stake, but guiding principles that meet the urgency of our moment. From the beginning of his papacy, Leo has signaled his commitment to addressing the AI revolution, choosing his name in direct reference to Leo XIII, the pope who during the industrial revolution insisted that people must come first, even in the face of economic transformation. With “Magnifica Humanitas,” Pope Leo has delivered on that commitment. The Catholic Church’s insistence on …

Pope Leo XIV takes aim at AI warfare – POLITICO

Pope Leo XIV takes aim at AI warfare – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

The encyclical is the pope’s first since his election last year. Emphasizing its significance, the pontiff took the unusual step of presenting it in person, accompanied by Canadian tech billionaire Christopher Olah, a co-founder of AI giant Anthropic. Pope Leo XIV attends the presentation of his first Encyclical Letter “Magnifica Humanitas” focused on the rise of artificial intelligence, in The Vatican on May 25, 2026. | Alberto Pizzoli/ AFP via Getty Images In his letter to Catholic bishops and faithful around the world, Leo described AI not just as a technological issue, but as a turning point for civilization. The encyclical places particular emphasis on the dangers posed by autonomous weapons systems, algorithmic decision-making and the detachment of human responsibility from acts of war. Leo, who holds a graduate degree in mathematics and once taught physics, does not reject artificial intelligence outright. But his encyclical emphasizes AI must remain subordinate to moral principles and new legal frameworks, ensuring new technologies “truly serve humanity.” “No algorithm can make war morally acceptable,” he wrote, insisting artificial intelligence …