Cardinal Michael Czerny, Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, has described Pope Leo XIV’s first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, as a profoundly synodal document that calls the Church to engage courageously with the challenges posed by artificial intelligence and contemporary society.
In a video message addressed to the Bishops of Switzerland during their plenary assembly at Einsiedeln Abbey, Cardinal Czerny reflected on the significance of the encyclical, published on May 25, and its implications for the Church’s mission in a rapidly changing world.
The Cardinal explained that the Vatican is currently engaged in follow-up work related to the encyclical and the newly established Pontifical Commission on Artificial Intelligence, created by Pope Leo XIV through a rescript dated May 12 and released on May 16 2026, to coordinate the Church’s response to developments in AI.
“One essential question presents itself to us: how can this new Commission enter into dialogue with the local Churches, accompany them, and support them in addressing the challenges and discernment that artificial intelligence raises today?” Cardinal Czerny said.
Reflecting on the encyclical’s central message, he noted that Magnifica Humanitas seeks to engage directly with contemporary realities by reaffirming the enduring principles of the Church’s social doctrine.
According to the Cardinal, the document helps the Church “recognise, understand, interpret, discern, and ultimately confront” the challenges that threaten human dignity and integral human development, extending beyond the question of artificial intelligence alone.
Cardinal Czerny further observed that the encyclical invites the Church to practise a synodality directed outward, encouraging believers to walk alongside society with courage and hope rather than retreating from difficult realities.
“This is what makes Magnifica Humanitas so profoundly synodal,” he said, pointing to the encyclical’s emphasis that no one can face today’s challenges alone and that every person has a role to play in building a more humane future.
The Cardinal also suggested that the document offers an opportunity for bishops, priests, and pastoral workers to undertake a genuine examination of conscience regarding the Church’s structures, methods, and approach to evangelisation.
He noted that the encyclical’s concern for safeguarding the human person in the age of artificial intelligence highlights important needs for evangelisation, pastoral accompaniment, reconciliation, and participation in the life of the Church.
Concluding his message, Cardinal Czerny said that the questions raised by Magnifica Humanitas should also be applied within the Church itself as it seeks to accompany humanity and proclaim the Gospel amid the challenges of the modern world.
Source: Vatican News