A couple of months ago, Pope Leo XIV released his first encyclical. Entitled Magnifica Humanitas, it is about “safeguarding the human person in the time of artificial intelligence.” I was intrigued that the Pope would choose this topic for his first encyclical. My undergraduate degree is in both computer science and philosophy, and as a seminarian also studied Catholic teaching and theology. In fact, my capstone project focused on the relationship between ethics and technology. Though intrigued, I also wasn’t surprised that the Pope chose this topic. Many have surmised that he selected the name “Leo” in honor of Pope Leo XIII, whose encyclical Rerum Novarum is considered the first such papal document on Catholic social teaching. The earlier Pope Leo, writing in the late 1800s, recognized that the world was facing significant change due to industrialization and scientific advancements. While those things brought great benefits, they also created new challenges that threatened human rights and dignity, particularly those of workers. It’s safe to say that our current Pope Leo had all this in mind—both when choosing his name and writing Magnifica Humanitas, which was released on the 135th anniversary of Rerum Novarum. He once again sees great technological advances taking place with their accompanying cultural changes, and no doubt wants to ensure that reaping their benefits does not come at the expense of our dignity. He says as much in the introduction to the encyclical.
Truth be told, I have not read all of Magnifica Humanitas yet. Nonetheless, I was struck by the Biblical reflection on which Pope Leo XIV grounds the encyclical. He first meditates on the Tower of Babel. There, the people sought to build a city through their own strength, without God. Despite having a shared language initially, they did not end up more united; the story ends with confusion and dispersion. This account is familiar enough; however, I would never have guessed the passage Pope Leo chose to reflect on next. It is from Nehemiah and has to do with the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem. Here, the work started with prayer and fasting. The prophet facilitated the collaboration of all in the city—noble and simple, strong and weak, old and young—and all had their part to play in the restoration. The result was unity and renewal within the city.
Pope Leo XIV concludes that even today, whenever we seek to build up the world, we must keep God at the center. In addition, human weakness is not a threat to renewal and growth. We do not need to eliminate it to succeed or find strength. Rather, we must not forget that all of us have a part to play in this work, no matter our relative weaknesses or strengths. I look forward to reading the rest of the encyclical to see how the Pope builds on this reflection, and I hope you’ll read it too.
Fr. Joah Ellis
Pastor
