Pope Leo XIV’s First Encyclical on Artificial Intelligence to Be Released on May 25

Vatican City , May 18, 2026: The Vatican has officially announced that Pope Leo XIV will publish his first encyclical on May 25, marking a significant moment in the Church’s response to the rapidly evolving world of artificial intelligence and digital technology.

Titled Magnifica Humanitas: On the Protection of Human Dignity in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, the document is expected to address the ethical, spiritual, and social challenges posed by emerging technologies. The Latin title Magnifica Humanitas, meaning “Magnificent Humanity,” reflects the Pope’s focus on safeguarding human dignity in an increasingly technological age.

The encyclical was signed by Pope Leo XIV on May 15, the 135th anniversary of Rerum Novarum, the landmark 1891 social encyclical of Pope Leo XIII that addressed workers’ rights and the social consequences of the Industrial Revolution.

The Vatican said Pope Leo XIV will personally speak during the official presentation of the encyclical at the Synod Hall at 11:30 a.m (Rome time) on May 25.

The presentation will include several prominent Church leaders and experts, including Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, Cardinal Michael Czerny, ethics professor Anna Rowlands, AI researcher Christopher Olah, and theologian Léocadie Lushombo. Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin will deliver the concluding remarks.

From the beginning of his pontificate, Pope Leo XIV has repeatedly highlighted the need for the Church to engage seriously with the moral implications of artificial intelligence. Speaking to the College of Cardinals shortly after his election, he explained that he chose the name “Leo” partly to honour Pope Leo XIII, whose teachings responded to the social upheavals of the first Industrial Revolution.

“In our own day,” Pope Leo XIV said, “the Church offers to everyone the treasury of her social teaching in response to another industrial revolution and to developments in the field of artificial intelligence that pose new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice and labour.”

The upcoming encyclical is expected to become one of the defining documents of Pope Leo XIV’s pontificate, particularly as governments, industries, and faith communities worldwide wrestle with the opportunities and risks associated with AI technologies.

By addressing these concerns through the lens of Catholic social teaching, the Vatican appears set to offer a moral framework aimed at ensuring that technological progress serves humanity rather than diminishes it.

Courtesy EWTN News English

Picture Courtesy EWTN News