From Pope Leo XIV and the highest ranking woman at the Vatican to an ambassador and governor, the 2026 graduates at U.S. Catholic colleges and universities heard faith-filled words of encouragement, challenge and inspiration to take with them into the world beyond campus.

On May 15, 2026 — the 135th anniversary of “Rerum Novarum” — Pope Leo XIV signed his first encyclical, “Magnifica Humanitas.” The date was deliberate.

Amid the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence and digital media, Pope Leo XIV is calling on families, schools and policymakers to forge an “educational alliance for the digital age” to protect the dignity and intellectual development of young people.

Pope Leo XIV’s first encyclical, “Magnifica Humanitas: On Safeguarding the Human Person in the Time of Artificial Intelligence,” addressed sexual exploitation as one of the human dignity concerns posed by AI.

In his first encyclical, Pope Leo XIV used a sweeping reflection on artificial intelligence to question whether the Catholic Church’s centuries-old just war framework remains valid in modern warfare and to ask pardon for the church’s role in slavery.

Uruguay’s bishops have confirmed “there is a high probability” Pope Leo XIV will visit the country in late 2026 and “progress is being made with hope toward its realization.”

Presenting the first encyclical of his pontificate, Pope Leo XIV warned that artificial intelligence must be “disarmed,” urging governments, tech leaders and society to confront the rapidly growing technology before it weakens human relationships, critical thinking and peace itself.

What does it mean to safeguard our humanity? That question is at the heart of Pope Leo XIV’s much anticipated first encyclical, “Magnifica Humanitas: On Safeguarding the Human Person in the Time of Artificial Intelligence,” released May 25. The following are some key things to know about this weighty papal letter.

Pope Leo XIV called for vigilance as he spoke at the Vatican press conference May 25 to present his first encyclical on artificial intelligence, saying his conversations with industry leaders — including “very troubling voices” who warned of autonomous weapons systems beyond effective human governance — had led him to the conviction that AI “needs to be disarmed.”

Just as it did in the industrial age, the Catholic Church is called to discern the rapidly evolving advances of digital technology in the light of the Gospel, said Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state.