I will never forget the moment on May 8, 2025, when the whole world was watching the Conclave and we saw the white smoke signaling that a new Pope had been elected. Then, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost stepped out and announced he would be taking the name Pope Leo XIV, honoring Pope Leo XIII who became famous for issuing what is now known as a social encyclical. This type of letter, issued to Catholics and all people of good will, provides doctrinal and moral guidelines on social and political matters.

Pope Leo XIV explicitly referred to Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a hot topic in today’s digital age that urgently requires moral guidelines from the Supreme Pontiff if it is to truly benefit humanity and not unleash evil forces, as its own creator, Nobel laureate Geoffrey Hinton, recently warned. What made this event especially meaningful to me and a group of top executives who traveled to Barcelona to attend a micro-credential course was the very topic of the course: “The Ethical Dimensions of Artificial Intelligence.” We could imagine the newly elected Pope talking directly to us. Yes, Your Holiness, we had just discussed the ethical dimensions of AI in that short seminar, which was conducted by very able professors from the famous IESE Business School, one of the best in the world.

First, let me briefly define the social doctrine of the Church. It sets forth matters for reflection, criteria for judgment, and guidelines for action on social and political issues confronting people in the world. To illustrate, the world faced by Pope Leo XIII was shaped by what we now refer to as the First Industrial Revolution (IR 1.0), which took place between 1790 and 1830. This was the age of the steam engine, the spinning jenny, and other mechanical devices that significantly improved the productivity of human labor.

The downside was that the introduction of what economists called “capital” led to production systems that were inhuman. These systems included long working hours for adult males at starvation wages, the exploitation of child labor, and the employment of even pregnant women for long hours. Those who have read the famous novels of Charles Dickens don't even have to read the history of England to picture the inhumanities connected with the First Industrial Revolution.

The owners of the machines and tools were called capitalists, who became infamous for being obsessed with maximum profits at the expense of their workers. It was, therefore, necessary for the Supreme Moral Teacher, the Pope, to issue the necessary doctrinal and moral guidelines on the new social order brought about by IR 1.0.

Rerum Novarum is Latin for “Of New Things.” It was issued on May 15, 1891, and addressed the conditions of the working classes during the First Industrial Revolution. Although more than a century has passed since its publication—in fact, in 1991, St. John Paul II issued an encyclical entitled Centessimus Annus to commemorate it—many of the social and political problems it addressed are still very much present, especially in developing countries like the Philippines. Just consider the current controversy about minimum wage legislation in the Philippines; in fact, President BBM was criticized for not bringing up the issue in his recent State of the Nation Address.

Let me briefly summarize the content of Rerum Novarum. Pope Leo XIII gave very specific guidelines on the rights and duties of both capital and labor. He stated that workers have a right to a fair wage, safe working conditions, and rest. Although the encyclical did not explicitly refer to a minimum wage, it was clear that the dignity of the worker as a human being requires a wage that allows them to support themselves and their family with a minimum of comfort and dignity. We shall discuss this in greater detail later.

Employers have a duty to treat workers with respect and justice, while workers have an obligation to perform their work honestly and to avoid violence. In response to Karl Marx's claim that private property is evil and must be abolished, Rerum Novarum made it clear that the right to private property is natural and must be protected. The State has no right to abolish private property, as Socialism proposes. In fact, Socialism was condemned for promoting class struggle and for undermining the very foundation of society: the family.

The role of the State is to ensure justice and protect the vulnerable. Government intervention is justified when workers are exploited. Workers, in turn, have the right to form associations or unions for mutual support. These associations should aim at the common good, not at class struggle or conflict, as espoused by the Marxists. The family is the basic unit of society and should be supported. A just society cannot exist without moral and religious education, and the Church has the right and duty to provide this. It must speak out on social issues, advocate for justice, and offer spiritual guidance and the principles for building a humane society.

There are great expectations that Pope Leo XIV will issue a document paralleling Rerum Novarum, providing the world with similar points for reflection, criteria for judgment, and guidelines for action on the new social order brought about by the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR 4.0). This includes the impact of Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, the Internet of Things, Data Analytics, and Social Media on the family, civil society, business, and the State.

It has only been five months since his election, but Pope Leo XIV has already been outspoken about the moral challenges posed by AI to the modern world. As can be gleaned from ChatGPT, from the outset of his pontificate, Leo XIV has identified AI as one of “humanity’s most pressing challenges,” drawing a parallel to the Industrial Revolution that was addressed by his namesake, Pope Leo XIII, in Rerum Novarum.

Leo emphasizes that AI must serve—not replace—human beings. It should uphold justice, protect labor rights, and avoid undermining human identity and dignity. He warns of digital labor precariousness, algorithmic control, and the concentration of power within tech oligopolies. He urges these technologies to promote the common good, solidarity, subsidiarity, and sustainability.

Drawing from the vast body of social doctrine accumulated since the first papal social encyclical of his namesake, let's remind ourselves of these key concepts from the social doctrine of the Church. These principles proceed from natural law and therefore can be accepted by any person of good will, regardless of their religious belief. As one of those who drafted the Philippine Constitution of 1987, I can attest that these social principles are embedded in the Declaration of Principles of our Constitution.

Our Constitution is based on a concept of the common good as “a social or juridical order that promotes the integral human development of each and every member of society.” This is not the “greatest good for the greatest number” promoted in utilitarian societies, where truth is determined by majority rule rather than on the basis of an unchanging natural law. A number of countries today, especially in the developed world, are suffering from moral decay precisely because they have embraced a "woke culture" based on the belief that truth is determined by majority rule.

To be continued.