Babel, Jerusalem, and Pope Leo XIV

Francis X. Maier & Michael Severance on Magnifica Humanitas

Last week, Religion & Liberty Online published a symposium of four essays that responded thoughtfully to the Magnifica humanitas, the first encyclical of Pope Leo XIV.

The first of these, by Acton’s Director of Research and Publications, Dr. John C. Pinheiro, is entitled, “Freedom and Responsibility: Seven Takeaways from Magnifica Humanitas.” It can be found HERE.

The second, by Dr. Stephen Barrows, Acton’s Chief Operating Officer, is “The Economics of Magnifica Humanitas.” It can be found HERE.

Acton Institute also invited Francis X. Maier, a senior fellow in Catholic Studies at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, to provide his thoughts. As Maier writes, “A Pope who quotes Gandalf in The Return of the King alongside Hannah Arendt may be an ecclesial novelty. But who he is and what he says has my attention—now and going forward.”

Mr. Maier’s essay, “Humanity, Magnificent, at a Crossroads,” can be found HERE.

Michael Severance, the Senior Fellow for Strategic Engagement at Acton’s Rome office, Istituto Acton, focused on the encyclical’s theme of Babel vs. Jerusalem. Severance calls Magnifica humanitas ”a compelling reflection on the relationship between artificial intelligence and human dignity.” He also finds it “striking for its accessibility and its urgency.”

Severance’s “Magnifica Humanitas: Between Babel and Jerusalem in the Age of AI,” can be found HERE.

More to come, including from Fr. Robert Sirico, president emeritus and co-founder of the Acton Institute.