Pope Leo XIV is calling on Catholic communicators to ensure that rapidly advancing technology always serves the truth, protects human dignity, and advances the common good rather than overshadowing the human person.
According to Vatican News, the Holy Father sent a message to participants gathered for the Seventh International Seminar on Church Communication, held July 27–28 at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile in Santiago. The event brought together communicators, pastoral leaders, academics, and Church representatives from across Latin America and the Caribbean to examine the ethical, cultural, and religious challenges presented by artificial intelligence in light of the Pope’s encyclical, Magnifica humanitas.
In a message signed by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin and addressed to Archbishop René Osvaldo Rebolledo Salinas, president of the Chilean Bishops’ Conference, Pope Leo expressed his hope that those working in Church communications would promote “a communication that, in the face of the new opportunities offered by technological development, knows how to safeguard the dignity of the human person and place every tool at the service of truth and the common good,” according to Vatican News.
The Pope also entrusted the seminar to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, praying that participants would confront the challenges of artificial intelligence “with wisdom and responsibility, so that ecclesial communication may foster encounter among people and contribute to the proclamation of the Gospel,” according to Vatican News.
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During the seminar’s opening session, Cardinal Fernando Natalio Chomalí Garib, Archbishop of Santiago de Chile, reflected on the growing influence of social media, describing digital platforms as “truly human” spaces because they reflect people’s emotions, relationships, and conflicts. According to Vatican News, he proposed four guiding principles for communication: truth, goodness, beauty, and usefulness.
Cardinal Chomalí emphasized that Magnifica humanitas should not be viewed merely as a document about technology. Instead, he said its deeper focus is the dignity of every human person and the pursuit of truth. “Today there is much discussion about artificial intelligence,” he said, “but this Encyclical speaks above all about human dignity and truth,” according to Vatican News.
The cardinal also encouraged communicators to build unity rather than division through their work. “We will promote dialogue, we will promote fraternity; in the end, we will build Jerusalem, not Babel,” he said, according to Vatican News. He later described Magnifica humanitas as a “Christological” encyclical during the Eucharistic celebration that followed, expressing hope that artificial intelligence would always remain in service to human dignity.
Archbishop Rebolledo Salinas likewise underscored the Church’s responsibility to guide technological development with moral clarity. According to Vatican News, he said, “The inviolable dignity of the human person must constitute the principle, the criterion and the ultimate goal of both technological development and scientific progress.”
As artificial intelligence continues to shape communication around the world, Pope Leo XIV’s message offers a distinctly Catholic reminder that innovation should never come at the expense of truth, authentic human relationships, or the God-given dignity of every person.
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