With the release of his first encyclical, Pope Leo XIV is doubling down on a fight for human dignity that has defined his papacy from day one.
The first American pope has been making waves since donning his 42,300 word “Magnifica humanitas” on May 15, which took a clear stance on modern crises from war and modern slavery, to technological development, wealth inequality, the erosion of democracy, and more.
Where Nate Tinner-Williams said he resonated most: centering humanity at the heart of progression, especially in the contemporary world of artificial intelligence (AI).
“When you look at these new issues, you have to have a critical eye, and be able to say, ‘Here’s the aspects of it that are good, here’s the aspects that can be very dangerous, and how do we waive it to without completely rejecting the new development as something we should never touch,” said Tinner-Williams, co-founder and editor of the Black Catholic Messenger, “and I’m grateful that Pope Leo does not take that route.”
While appealing for truth, peace, and the safeguarding of dignity work, the pope’s arguably most controversial stance came from challenging artificial intelligence as it equates to human capacities.
In a candid call to “disarm” AI, he emphasized a need to prevent technology from replacing humanity, often driven by the pursuit of geopolitical and commercial capital.
“To disarm means discrediting the assumption that technical power automatically confers the right to govern,” read the document officially presented to the Vatican on May 25. “The true alternative is not between enthusiasm and fear, but between two paths of development: a progress that serves individuals and peoples, or a progress that subjects them to the mentality of power.”
Released on the 135th anniversary of the promulgation of Pope Leo XIII’s Rerum novarum, the encyclical included urges for clarity at every stage of the development process to shape adequate AI policies and legal frameworks, independent oversight, and user education.
For Tinner-Williams, the greater charge looks like all faith institutions coming together to move the needle on social justice.
“In this case, we have religious beliefs coming into play, where [Pope Leo is saying] God has something to say about the way that artificial intelligence affects our society, the Catholic Church has something to say,” he told The Informer, “and I think we should lean into that because it’s going to take all the different resources that we have.”
Since the document’s release, Leo has continued to push the status quo by appointing Maria Montserrat Alvarado, current president of the U.S.-based Catholic media outlet, EWTN News, to lead the Vatican’s powerful communications department on June 2, marking the first lay woman to hold a top position in the governance of the Roman Catholic church.
Additionally, Tinner-Williams pointed out that the “Magnifica humanitas” served as the the first time a pope has officially acknowledged the Vatican’s role in the Atlantic slave trade, which the pope embedded in a larger connection to the AI economy he considers “new forms of slavery.”
Other supporters on X (formerly known as Twitter) amplified the encyclical as a blueprint for speaking truth to power.
“The Pope is a great example of the idea that cruelty is actually dumb and that kindness and openness come from intelligence. A great juxtaposition to the (techno) fascists of our time,” read one X user’s post on May 31. “It takes a mind to create a better world, it takes zero to destroy it.”
Amplifying Community Voices in Spirituality and Truth
As 2026 marks a year of midterm and special elections, Tinner-Williams said the next few months are a pivotal time to utilize the strength of the vote.
He backed his nationwide call-to-action with reference to the growing threat of data centers across the nation, including parts of the DMV, which hold direct ties to the explosion of AI and environmental challenges prompted by large amounts of energy and water use.
“We’ve seen data centers get stopped by community members who just say, ‘No…we’ve seen the effects that these facilities have, and we’re not going to have it in our community,’ and they stop it from [finishing construction], or… they get rid of the political leaders that greenlit the facility,” the co-founder continued. “Just getting out in our communities and making sure people know that they do have a voice, that they can respond… with their own civic duty.”
Meanwhile, he added the core responsibility of all people to not only read Pope Leo’s plea, but promote it “if you see things that are important to society right now.”
“It can’t just be politics, it can’t just be religion, but it should be all these different things that undergird how we assess right and wrong,” Tinner-Williams told The Informer. “AI is growing faster than we can track sometimes. It’s important that we have grounding both spiritually and otherwise, to be able to respond effectively.”
