A formal letter the pope writes to the Catholic Church on matters of faith and ethics, called an encyclical, is driving a new campaign to set limits on artificial intelligence. Pope Leo XIV published one in May titled Magnifica Humanitas. A charity called Saint Peter for Humanity used it as the foundation for a glass sculpture presented to him at a General Audience in early September. The same organization now plans to bring 70 leaders to New York City next week to begin drafting the Codex Humanitatis, a document meant to define what must remain human as AI grows more powerful.
The sculpture, based on an original design by Italian architect and designer Gae Aulenti, is made from green Murano glass. It contains four handwritten passages from the encyclical. One reads: "In the era of artificial intelligence, when human dignity is threatened by new forms of dehumanization, ours is the pressing duty to remain profoundly human."
What the New York gathering is for
Olivier Francois, president and chairman of Saint Peter for Humanity, told Fox News Digital that the group will convene Nobel laureates, artists, thinkers, philanthropists, and technology and AI experts. "We recognize the benefits of AI," he said. "We just believe that there is another force that should belong to that conversation, and that force is humanity." The organizing principle, he said, is straightforward: "AI should serve people, protect human dignity, expand human potential and advance common good."
Working across ten groups, participants will draft the Codex Humanitatis on topics including the future of work, accountability, information integrity, human oversight, and the protection of children and families. After that session, Saint Peter for Humanity said the draft will go through a global consultation before being refined into a final set of principles. The organization also plans to bring those principles to the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos and to engage governments and companies in translating them into practice.
What the pope actually wrote
In Magnifica Humanitas, Pope Leo XIV argued that AI systems often operate in ways that make it difficult to assign responsibility when something goes wrong. He called accountability essential: the ability to identify who must justify a decision, monitor it, and correct any harm.
He pushed back on the idea that faster adoption equals progress. Calling for a slower pace when needed, he wrote, is "an exercise of responsible care for the human family." Without legal frameworks, independent oversight, informed users, and an active political system, change will be governed, he wrote, by those who control data, infrastructure, and computing power.
The New York gathering is set for next week.