Dear Friends,
The election of Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost as the 267th Pope is a great historical event not only because he is the first Pope from the United States of America, and the first Augustinian Pope, but also because of the name he chose for his papacy. It was the young Juliet in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet who assiduously asked, “what’s in a name?” The affirmative answer to this perennial question reveals that there is indeed something in a name. The name given to someone, or the name one chooses for a position received or a title given, is significantly important. This truth is found in many cultures around the world, even in the Bible. For example, the name given to our Blessed Lord before he was born revealed the ministry he was given by His Heavenly Father. The name “Jesus” means “He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). This name reechoes the intention of His Father: “God so loved the world that He gave His only Son so that anyone who believes in Him will have eternal life.” (John 3:16). Therefore, a person’s name most often defines who the individual is and reveals ingredients of purposeful life goals and vocational strides both in one’s modus viviendi (way of life) and in the person’s avowed modus operandi (way of acting). When the Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV majestically took the name “Leo” after Pope Leo XIII, a prophet of change and a revered Churchman who is today called the ‘Father of Catholic Social Teaching,’ the people of God rejoiced because we have before us a man who would not be afraid to respond to social problems and structural sins with a deep rooted gospel principles and grounded apostolic zeal.
The publication of Magnificat Humanitas (Magnificent Humanity) in response to the benefits and disadvantages of artificial intelligence (AI) is a blessing to the Church and to humanity in general. Providentially, Magnificat Humanitas (2026) celebrates the 135th anniversary of Rerum Novarum (1891). Pope Leo XIII in Rerum Novarum, addressed the social issues of his time, especially in the areas of worker’s rights, the inequalities in the distribution of material goods, and the evils of secularism. These prevailing social issues were seen as “new things” (Rerum Novarum) (MH, 4). In the same vein, Pope Leo XIV, with greater dexterity and spiritual sensibility, set out to address the “new things” of the 21st Century, especially the seemingly revolutionary issues of digitalization, artificial intelligence (AI), and robotics. The Holy Father addresses these issues principally from the perspective of how they affect the dignity of the human person. In publishing Magnificat Humanitas, our beloved and soft-spoken American Pope articulated thus: “I therefore wish to add my own voice to this living tradition” (MH, 3). Thus, he intentionally followed in the footsteps of some of the holy Popes of the 20th and 21st Centuries, who wrote seminal social encyclicals to commemorate the anniversaries of Rerum Novarum (1891). Among them are Pope Pius XI’s Quadragesimo Anno- (1931), Pope John XXIII’ s Mater et Magistra (1961), Pope Paul VI’s Octogésima Adveniens (1971), Pope John Paul II’s Laborem Exercens (1981), and Pope John Paul II’s Centesimus Annus (1991). These encyclicals were written to promote the core principles of Catholic Social Teaching as outlined in Rerum Novarum. These principles are enunciated to safeguard the dignity of the human person in the face of increasing industrialization of modern society. These fundamental principles include; human dignity and human rights, the common good, subsidiarity, solidarity, participation, social justice, and the universal destination of goods. In praise of these principles, Pope Leo XIV says, “Today, the Social Doctrine of the Church is a legacy of wisdom, where we find principles for thought, criteria for discernment and judgement, and concrete guidelines for action. Founded on Sacred Scripture and Tradition, and in engagement with the sciences, it helps us clearly interpret the challenges of the present and identify appropriate ways for living out a clear Christian witness, with joy and in service to the world” (MH, 3).
Magnificat Humanitas has five chapters with a beautiful introduction and a well-articulated conclusion. The introduction begins with two biblical images and thought-provoking narratives in the Hebrew Bible. The first is the “Tower of Babel” (Genesis 11:1-9) and the other is the “Rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem by Nehemiah” (Nehemiah 2-6). The Holy Father Pope Leo XIV, ab initio, observed thus “Humanity created by God in all its grandeur, Magnificat Humanitas, is today facing a pivotal choice, either to construct a new Tower of Babel, or to build the city in which God and humanity dwell together” (MH, 1). Pope Leo noted that in Babel, the builders, the constructors of the tower, attempted to make a name for themselves, to establish their own glory, and to guarantee stability and security for themselves, without any reference to God (MH, 7). Analyzing the evils of building a city without any reference to God, Pope Leo XIV said, “When a city is built on pride and the claim to self-sufficiency, communication breaks down, languages are confused and people no longer understand each other. The result is not unity, but dispersion. Babel thus reveals the limits of any effort that, however grandiose, arises from self-affirmation, sacrifices human dignity for efficiency, and aspires to reach heaven without God’s blessings” (MH, 7). In the case of those who wish to rebuild Jerusalem under the leadership of Nehemiah, we encounter a community who is willing to fast, to pray, to intercede, and to do what it takes to get into right relation with God. This pilgrim community worked together such that they built a lasting city, one that leads to righteousness and one in which righteousness can abide (MH, 8).
These two biblical images reveal that we cannot make genuine progress as a human community if there is no reference to God. As children of God, the Holy Spirit challenges us today regarding our relationship with technology and the ongoing digital revolution. The encyclical, Magnificat Humanitas invites us to critically consider how we use technology in the light of these two biblical images and narratives. How are we using the talents (scientific discoveries) (Matthew 25:14-30) that God has given to us? Do we realize that while technology has the power to heal, connect, educate, and protect our common home, it can also ruin relationships, divide families, affect mental capacities, diminish critical thinking, and create new forms of injustice? How do we navigate the relationship between faith and science? Are we constructing Babel in our families, workplaces, relationships, and beliefs, or are we rebuilding Jerusalem by being in the presence of the Lord and ask His help in our daily efforts to rebuild fraternal coexistence, encourage the spirit of solidarity, and recognize the beautiful gift of subsidiarity in the relationship among peoples and nations? To answer these questions, let us open the pages of Pope Leo XIV’s Magnificat Humanitas and learn how to respond to these “new things” not with fear or naïve enthusiasm but with wisdom, discernment, and hope.
Enjoy the ride with our dear Pope Leo XIV- in his first social encyclical, Magnificat Humanitas (2026).
Ad majorem Dei gloriam
Very Rev. Benedict Nwachukwu-Udaku is the Director of Academic Formation at St. Junipero Serra House of Formation and the Vicar for Priests in the Diocese of San Bernardino.