Pope Leo XIV opened his apostolic journey to France on Friday with a sweeping defense of human dignity, warning that artificial intelligence, nuclear weapons and a growing tendency to measure human life by usefulness could threaten humanity’s future.
Speaking during meetings with French President Emmanuel Macron, government authorities and diplomats in Paris, the Holy Father called attention to France’s Christian heritage while insisting that respect for human life must remain at the heart of society.
According to the Associated Press, Pope Leo reminded French leaders of the nation’s “deep Christian roots” and described the right to life as the “indispensable foundation of every other human right.”
The message carries particular significance in France, where abortion was enshrined in the Constitution in 2024 and lawmakers recently approved legislation allowing some adults with incurable illnesses to receive lethal medication. The Catholic Church has opposed such measures, maintaining that human life must be protected from conception until natural death.
But Pope Leo’s concern for human dignity extended beyond traditional life issues.
Turning to artificial intelligence, the Pope warned of a troubling contradiction emerging as societies increasingly describe computer systems as possessing “intelligence” while human beings themselves can be valued according to their productivity.
“The paradox has become increasingly evident: while ‘intelligence’ is attributed to computational systems, we struggle to recognize the inalienable dignity of human persons,” Pope Leo said, according to AP.
The Pope warned that people whose lives are considered inefficient or unproductive risk being treated as disposable, connecting the ethical challenges surrounding AI with the Church’s broader defense of the inherent worth of every human person.
He later brought that warning directly to the headquarters of UNESCO, which was included among the official stops on the first day of his Sept. 25–28 visit to France. The Vatican’s official itinerary confirms that Pope Leo was scheduled to address UNESCO in Paris before celebrating Vespers at Notre-Dame Cathedral and attending a prayer vigil with young people at the Stade de France.
“If we are to avoid losing our humanity amid a ‘paradise of machines’ invading and conditioning our daily lives, there is an urgent need for education in ethical discernment and the capacity to acknowledge the moral good,” the Pope said, according to AP.
Artificial intelligence has emerged as a major concern of Pope Leo’s pontificate. His remarks in France emphasized that technological advancement cannot be separated from moral responsibility and the common good.
Speaking with reporters aboard the papal plane on the way to Paris, Pope Leo said he was encouraged by dialogue between the Vatican and technology companies.
“And I think from their perspective, many of them, they’re very much open to looking for ways of making sure that AI does not displace or ultimately destroy humanity, but rather than be a tool for human beings,” he said, according to AP. “Good things are beginning at least.”
The Pope also addressed another technological threat to human life: nuclear weapons.
Against the backdrop of continuing wars in Europe and the Middle East, Pope Leo rejected the idea that lasting peace can be secured through nuclear deterrence, describing that approach as “mistaken” and warning that it contributes to a renewed arms race.
“Peace is not a balance of power; rather, it is built day by day through dialogue and justice,” he said, according to AP.
The Vatican described the Pope’s message to French authorities as an appeal for France to continue working for a peace that is “unarmed and disarming,” while also emphasizing the contribution Christianity continues to make to French society.
Pope Leo’s four-day journey is the first official papal state visit to France in 18 years and includes stops in Paris, Lourdes and Metz. The Vatican itinerary includes Mass in Paris, prayer at the Grotto of Massabielle in Lourdes, meetings with the French bishops and an interreligious gathering focused on Europe, peace and unity.
As the visit began, Pope Leo placed a single principle at the center of issues ranging from abortion and assisted dying to artificial intelligence and nuclear weapons: technological and political progress cannot come at the expense of the dignity of the human person.
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