Pope Leo to issue first major work, addressing AI, on May 25
By Joshua McElwee
Vatican Announcement and Encyclical Overview
VATICAN CITY, May 18 (Reuters) - Pope Leo will release his first in-depth document, expected to address the rise of artificial intelligence and challenges to workers' rights, on May 25, the Vatican announced on Monday.
Focus and Title of the Encyclical
The text, known as an encyclical, is also likely to decry the wars roiling the world, according to sources.
It will be titled "Magnifica Humanitas" (Magnificent Humanity) and was formally signed by the pope on Friday ahead of publication, a Vatican statement said.
Presentation Event and Key Participants
Leo, the first U.S. pope, will take part in a Vatican presentation of the text on the day of its publication, marking a break from papal tradition.
Also joining that event will be Christopher Olah, co-founder of AI company Anthropic, the Vatican said.
Significance of Encyclicals
Encyclicals are one of the highest forms of teaching from a pontiff to the Church's 1.4 billion members.
Papal Priorities and Social Issues
"A pope's first encyclical typically outlines his priorities, focusing on what he sees as serious social and moral issues for the modern world," said John Thavis, a retired Vatican correspondent who covered three papacies.
Monday's statement said the pope's text would address "the protection of the human person in the age of artificial intelligence."
Recent Papal Statements and Historical Context
Leo has been speaking forcefully in recent weeks against the direction taken by world leadership, and drew the ire of President Donald Trump after criticizing the Iran war.
The new document, which has been in the works for months, is expected to address a range of social issues and may offer the Church's most comprehensive guidance on issues of workers' rights in decades.
Leo, the 14th pope to choose that name, signed the text on May 15, the 135th anniversary of an encyclical by Pope Leo XIII, who called for better pay and working conditions for labourers at the end of the 19th century.
AI, Warfare, and the Church's Stance
Leo XIV, who marked a year as pope on May 8, has warned about the risks of AI several times.
He decried its use in warfare in a speech at Europe's largest university last week, citing conflicts in Ukraine, Gaza, Lebanon and Iran as showing "the inhumane evolution of the relationship between war and new technologies in a spiral of annihilation".
(Reporting by Joshua McElwee, editing by Gavin Jones)
