A new body approved by the Pope
The decision has been formalized through a rescript signed by Cardinal Michael Czerny, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Service of Integral Human Development. The aim is to articulate a common response from the various Vatican bodies to a technology that the Pontiff himself considers decisive for the future of humanity.
The new commission is established under Article 28 of the apostolic constitution Praedicate Evangelium, which allows for the creation of interdicasterial bodies for matters that simultaneously affect several departments of the Curia. The Vatican considers artificial intelligence to be precisely one of those cross-cutting areas that require constant coordination.
AI, a priority of the new pontificate
Since the beginning of his pontificate, Leo XIV has placed artificial intelligence among the major issues on his agenda. In several public interventions he has compared the impact of this technological revolution to the Industrial Revolution, warning that AI not only changes economic and labor systems, but also the very understanding of the human person.
Underlying this concern is the defense of human dignity and the fear that certain technological applications may end up subordinating the person to the logic of efficiency, calculation or algorithmic control.
Dicasteries and pontifical academies involved
The commission will be made up of representatives from various Vatican dicasteries, including those for the Doctrine of the Faith, Culture and Education, Communication and Integral Human Development, as well as members of the Pontifical Academy for Life, the Pontifical Academy of Sciences and the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences.
During the first year, with the possibility of renewal, coordination will remain in the hands of the dicastery led by Cardinal Czerny. Subsequently, the Pope may entrust that coordination to another of the participating institutions, always for annual periods.
Internal policies for the use of AI in the Holy See
The new body will have the function of facilitating the exchange of information and projects related to artificial intelligence, including internal policies for the use of these tools within the Holy See itself.
The Vatican thus makes it clear that it does not intend to limit itself to general theoretical or ethical reflections, but also to regulate and coordinate the concrete use of AI systems in its administrative, academic and communicative structures.
Continuity with Antiqua et Nova
The creation of this commission follows the publication of Antiqua et Nova, the document jointly prepared by the dicasteries for the Doctrine of the Faith and for Culture and Education on the relationship between human intelligence and artificial intelligence.
That text already warned of the risks of reducing intelligence to mere data processing and emphasized that no machine can fully replace human moral consciousness, freedom or spiritual capacity.
A new major issue for the Church
In some Vatican circles this initiative is compared to the Vatican Covid-19 Commission created by Pope Francis during the pandemic. At that time the Church sought to address a global health crisis in a coordinated manner; now the Holy See appears convinced that artificial intelligence constitutes another of the great structural challenges of the 21st century.
The issue is not solely economic or technical. For the Vatican, artificial intelligence raises fundamental questions about human dignity, freedom, education, work, communication and the very spiritual life of contemporary man.