On Monday of this week, Pope Leo XIV released to the public his first encyclical letter. Its Latin title Magnifica Humanitas may be translated as “The Grandeur of Humanity.” The letter is addressed to all people of good will, not only Catholic believers.
The focus of the document is Artificial Intelligence or AI and the pope describes the development of AI as being a transformational technology that will alter patterns of human labor for many workers.
For Leo the prospect of high unemployment and a dramatically changed workplace must be examined, and strategies developed, to secure a future where workers maintain their dignity. In Leo’s mind, human dignity is the fundamental criterion for determining what is morally right and wrong. The pope’s concern is that other factors such as efficiency, return on investment, or productivity will overshadow the dignity of each and every person in the way we use Artificial Intelligence.
Additional papal concerns about AI are: who controls it and how can we regulate its power? In the past, government, at local or national levels, had the ability to guide and oversee innovation. Today, the main drivers of technological change are private companies and private capital. Technological power thus presents a challenge for any society to discern and direct such power to serve the public good rather than the personal interests of elites.
In the early part of his letter Pope Leo lays out a set of ethical criteria that might enable us to better discern the proper direction and uses of AI. He then surveys a range of issues that call out for public discussion and action. For example, the way AI can be used to transmit truth or misinformation and how that will influence a democracy is one such issue. There is concern regarding children and the realm of education and how AI can help or hinder the growth and maturation of young people. The pope also challenges the employment of AI in warfare and the use of lethal weaponry with no human oversight or clear chain of command. These and other matters suggest that AI cannot simply be left to evolve without public scrutiny.
What the Pope is saying to us is that artificial intelligence can be a helpful development for human well-being, or it can become something that brings about great harm to societies and persons. The key issue the Pope Leo raises is: will AI be used with moral sensitivity to the value of human dignity? He reminds us that while Artificial Intelligence exists, there is no such thing as Artificial Wisdom; for that we humans need serious ethical reflection and moral discernment. The Pope’s recent letter is a helpful place to start.
Kenneth R. Himes is a Franciscan friar and Catholic priest. He is professor emeritus in theology at Boston College and is presently Scholar in Residence at Siena University in Loudonville, NY.
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