The Peace and All Good Column

Archbishop Gregory J. Hartmayer, OFM Conv., is the seventh Archbishop of Atlanta. In “Peace and All Good,” he shares pastoral reflections.

The first encyclical of Pope Leo XIV has already generated worldwide attention. Entitled “Magnifica Humanitas” (“Magnificent Humanity”), the document addresses one of the most pressing questions of our age: how humanity should respond to the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI). Signed on May 15, and published on May 25, the encyclical presents a profound reflection on technology, human dignity, work, truth, freedom, and the common good. 

What is artificial intelligence? The term is used so loosely in public conversation that it helps to be clear. Artificial intelligence refers to computer systems designed to perform tasks that normally require human intelligence: recognizing language, generating text and images, making predictions, diagnosing disease, driving vehicles, or conducting financial transactions. These systems learn from vast amounts of data and, in their most advanced forms, can produce outputs that are remarkably difficult to distinguish from those of a human being. They are already embedded in the phones in your pocket, the searches you conduct online, the recommendations streaming services send you, and increasingly in the decisions made about your credit, your healthcare and your employment. AI is already here. 

At first glance, an encyclical on artificial intelligence may seem unusual. Yet Pope Leo XIV places the issue squarely within the Church’s long tradition of Catholic social teaching. He deliberately signed the document on the 135th anniversary of Pope Leo XIII’s landmark encyclical “Rerum Novarum,” which addressed the social upheavals of the Industrial Revolution. Just as Leo XIII responded to the challenges posed by industrialization, Pope Leo XIV seeks to guide the Church and the world through the transformations brought about by digital technology and artificial intelligence.  

The Holy Father begins with a stark observation: humanity stands at a crossroads. Drawing upon the biblical image of the Tower of Babel, he warns that technological progress divorced from moral wisdom can lead to new forms of domination, inequality and dehumanization. At the same time, he insists that technological advances can serve authentic human flourishing when guided by ethical principles rooted in the dignity of the human person.  

A central theme throughout the encyclical is that human beings are more than the sum of their abilities, productivity, or data. Artificial intelligence may perform tasks with astonishing speed and efficiency, but it cannot replicate the spiritual, relational and moral dimensions that belong uniquely to the human person. Human dignity derives not from what we can produce, but from who we are: persons created in the image and likeness of God.  

The pope expresses particular concern about the growing concentration of technological power in the hands of a few corporations and institutions. He warns that unchecked technological development could exacerbate economic inequality, undermine democratic participation and weaken social solidarity. The encyclical therefore calls for prudent regulation, public accountability, and international cooperation to ensure that technological innovation serves the common good rather than private interests alone. 

Education receives special attention in the document. Pope Leo XIV cautions that reliance on AI-generated information can weaken critical thinking, creativity, and genuine human interaction if used uncritically. For Catholic schools, colleges and universities, the challenge is not simply whether to use AI but how to use it responsibly. Educational institutions must form students who can engage in technology wisely while preserving the habits of reflection, discernment and interpersonal encounters that are essential to human growth.  

The Holy Father also addresses the future of work. Echoing themes found throughout Catholic social teaching, he argues that labor is not merely an economic activity but a participation in God’s creative work. As automation transforms industries and professions, societies must ensure that workers are not treated as expendable. Economic systems must remain ordered toward the flourishing of persons and communities, not solely toward efficiency or profit.  

Among the most striking sections of the encyclical are those dealing with warfare and the military use of artificial intelligence. Pope Leo XIV strongly warns against delegating life-and-death decisions to autonomous systems. Human beings must remain morally responsible for decisions affecting human life. Technologies that distance decision-makers from the consequences of violence risk eroding the moral foundations necessary for peace.  

 Yet “Magnifica Humanitas” is not fundamentally a document about machines. It is a document about humanity. Again and again, the Pope returns to the Christian conviction that every person possesses an inviolable dignity that no technology can replace or surpass. The encyclical calls believers to resist the temptation to measure human worth by efficiency, utility, or technological capability. Instead, it urges a renewed commitment to solidarity, fraternity, truth, and love.  

 For Catholics, the encyclical offers both a challenge and an opportunity. The challenge is to engage in emerging technologies thoughtfully and ethically. The opportunity is to witness to a vision of the human person grounded in the Gospel. In an age increasingly shaped by algorithms and automation, Pope Leo XIV reminds the Church and the world of a timeless truth: technology exists for the human person, not the human person for technology.  

Next steps for Atlanta Catholics 

What does this mean for us here in Atlanta? Our archdiocese is home to a remarkable and growing community of Catholics—people from every nation, every background, every walk of life. We have hospitals and universities and schools. We have professionals in the technology sector itself, many of them people of deep faith who are grappling every day with exactly these questions. We have families trying to raise children with integrity and inner freedom in a world saturated with digital noise. We have workers worried about what the next five years will bring. And we have parishes—communities of prayer and support where these questions can be brought before God and discerned together. 

“Magnifica Humanitas” is addressed to all of them. It is addressed, too, to those who make decisions—in business, in government, in education, in healthcare—about how AI is developed and used. The Church is not asking those leaders to be less innovative. It is asking them to be more human. It is asking them to bring to the table what the Pope calls “a wisdom concerning the human that our present time desperately needs.” 

I encourage you to read this encyclical, or at least to spend time with it. It is available in full on the Vatican website. In the months ahead, there will be opportunities for reflection and conversation about its themes—in our schools, our parishes and our community organizations. I hope our pastors, educators and lay leaders will take it up as a resource for adult faith formation and community discernment. The questions it raises are not peripheral. They are among the most important questions of our time. 

The pope concludes with a line that has stayed with me since I first read it: “In the era of artificial intelligence, when human dignity is threatened by new forms of dehumanization, ours is the pressing duty to remain profoundly human.” That is a duty the Church has always understood. It is, in the end, the duty of love.