Overview

• At a July 29 Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica, the first dedicated gathering of “digital missionaries,” Pope Leo XVI urged the protection of intrinsic human worth in the AI and social media era.
• He warned influencers against prioritizing followers and engagement metrics over genuine relationships and cautioned them to avoid spreading fake news or frivolous content.
• The Pope described digital evangelism as “an encounter between hearts” rather than merely content creation, addressing attendees in Italian, Spanish and English.
• Cardinal Antonio Tagle outlined ethical guidelines that forbid false advertising, coercion, brainwashing and the monetization of spiritual outreach.
• The event, part of the Jubilee of Youth for the Holy Year, builds on Pope Leo’s June AI summit that advocated binding frameworks to govern artificial intelligence responsibly.