In his first encyclical, Pope Leo XIV urged governments and corporations to regulate artificial intelligence while also asking forgiveness for the Catholic Church’s delayed condemnation of slavery.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Pope Leo XIV used his first papal encyclical to issue a sweeping warning about artificial intelligence, calling on world leaders, corporate executives and political institutions to prevent the technology from displacing workers, weakening human dignity and expanding the use of autonomous weapons.
The document, titled “Magnifica Humanitas,” or “Magnificent Humanity,” runs more than 42,000 words and marks the first major teaching text of Leo’s papacy, Just the News reported.
Leo, the first U.S.-born pope, argued that artificial intelligence cannot be left largely in the hands of private developers, political convenience or abstract ethical appeals. He called instead for enforceable protections, independent supervision and accountable public policy.
“It is not enough to invoke ethics in the abstract; robust legal frameworks, independent oversight, informed users and a political system that does not abdicate its responsibility are required,” Leo wrote. “A more moral AI is not enough if that morality is determined by a few.”
A central portion of the encyclical focused on labor, with Leo warning that rapid automation could leave large numbers of people without work, purpose or social participation even in technologically advanced societies. He urged labor unions to broaden their alliances with governments and business leaders to address the threat before AI-driven job losses become entrenched.
“A society that guarantees employment to only a small fraction of the population, despite having a high level of technical development, risks exposing many to forced inactivity, a lack of responsibility and the absence of daily tasks and stimuli, resulting in human and cultural impoverishment,” Leo warned.
The pope framed employment not only as an economic issue, but as a human one, arguing that work gives people responsibility, rhythm, contribution and daily structure. Without protections, he suggested, artificial intelligence could intensify inequality by allowing productivity and technical capacity to grow while excluding much of the population from meaningful labor.
Leo also raised concerns about military applications of AI, especially systems capable of selecting or attacking targets without sufficient human control. He warned that autonomous weapons could lower the threshold for conflict by making military force easier to deploy and less accountable.
The pope wrote that “the growing ease with which autonomous weapons systems can be deployed makes war more ‘feasible’ and less subject to human control.”
His warning placed artificial intelligence alongside broader moral questions about political power, technological development and the responsibilities of institutions that shape public life. The encyclical called for rules that protect people before governments and corporations adopt systems whose long-term consequences may be difficult to reverse.
In a separate communication, Leo addressed the Roman Catholic Church’s historical relationship to slavery, asking forgiveness for what he described as its delayed and inadequate condemnation of the practice.
“It is impossible not to feel deep sorrow when contemplating the immense suffering and humiliation endured by so many in stark contrast to their immeasurable dignity as persons infinitely loved by the Lord,” he wrote. “For this, in the name of the Church, I sincerely ask for pardon.”
Leo specifically pointed to the church’s role during the 14th through 16th centuries, when religious authorities in Rome responded to requests from rulers and, in some cases, approved or regulated systems of subjugation.
“Already in the early modern period, the Apostolic See of Rome, responding to the requests of sovereigns, intervened several times in order to regulate and legitimize forms of subjugation, and, in certain cases, including the enslavement of ‘infidels,’” he wrote.
The pope said historical figures should not simply be judged by modern standards, but he also said that context does not excuse the church’s failure to act sooner.
He wrote that while past leaders cannot be evaluated only through “21st century moral sensibilities,” “neither can we deny nor diminish the delay with which both society and the church came to denounce the scourge of slavery.”
Taken together, Leo’s statements presented the encyclical as both a warning about emerging technology and a reflection on institutional responsibility. His message urged leaders to confront artificial intelligence before it reshapes work and war beyond human control, while also acknowledging past moral failures tied to one of history’s gravest abuses.
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