As a devout Catholic who also spends every day covering technology, Linux, AI, and Silicon Valley culture, I have been extremely curious to see how the Church would eventually respond to the artificial intelligence boom. This week, Pope Leo XIV finally gave the world a very clear answer.
In his first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, the new pope tackles artificial intelligence head on. And frankly, it is one of the most interesting things I have read about AI in quite some time.
Believe it or not, the document does not read like some anti-technology rant from people who do not understand computers. Quite the opposite, actually. Pope Leo acknowledges that AI could improve medicine, education, accessibility, and scientific research. But he also warns that humanity risks creating systems that slowly strip away dignity, purpose, privacy, and even free will if society blindly chases automation and efficiency above all else.
As someone who covers AI constantly, I found parts of the encyclical almost unsettling in how accurately they reflect today’s tech landscape.
The Pope repeatedly warns about concentrating power into the hands of a small number of corporations that control algorithms, personal data, and digital infrastructure. He never mentions specific companies by name, but it is impossible not to think about firms like OpenAI, Google, Meta, Microsoft, and others currently racing to dominate AI.
One section that really stood out to me involved labor and automation. Pope Leo compares today’s AI revolution to the Industrial Revolution that inspired Rerum Novarum back in 1891. Just as the Church once warned about workers being treated as disposable machinery, Leo XIV now warns about human beings becoming secondary to algorithms and optimization.
That concern feels very real right now.
Every week we see another company bragging about replacing workers with AI agents, automating creative work, or reducing headcount thanks to machine learning tools. In tech circles, this is often framed as inevitable progress. The Pope’s argument is that society should stop and ask whether every form of automation is actually good for humanity in the first place.
I also appreciated that the encyclical directly condemns autonomous AI weapons and surveillance systems. The idea of machines making life-and-death decisions without meaningful human oversight is something that should terrify people regardless of political ideology or religion.
What makes Magnifica Humanitas fascinating is that it does not reject innovation. The Church is not saying computers are evil. It is asking whether human beings are still at the center of technological progress, or whether humanity itself is slowly becoming subordinate to data collection, behavioral prediction, and economic efficiency.
That distinction matters.
A lot of AI coverage today tends to swing between blind hype and pure doomposting. Pope Leo XIV instead approaches the issue from a moral and philosophical perspective that honestly feels refreshing compared to the usual tech industry talking points.
Even for non-Catholics, I think this encyclical deserves attention. AI is no longer some niche technology discussion reserved for software engineers and venture capitalists. It is becoming a societal issue that affects jobs, relationships, truth, privacy, art, and human identity itself.
The Catholic Church clearly recognizes that now too.
