Seven Things You Should Know Before the Publication of Leo XIV’s First Major Magisterial Document

(ZENIT News / Rome, 05.18. 2026) – The Holy See Press Office announced that the first Encyclical of Pope Leo XIV will be released on May 25. Here are seven things you must know before the publication of Leo XIV’s first major magisterial document:

1) The Encyclical was signed by the Holy Father on May 15 and is titled Magnifica Humanitas, on the protection of the human person in the age of Artificial Intelligence (AI).

2) The Encyclical was signed by the Holy Father on May 15, the 135th anniversary of the promulgation of the Encyclical Rerum Novarum by Pope Leo XIII.

3) The presentation of the document will take place on May 25, 2026, at 11:30 a.m., in the Synod Hall, in the presence of the Holy Father, being the first time in history that a Pontiff presents his own document to the world.

4) The speakers on the day of the presentation of the Encyclical will be: Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith; Cardinal Michael Czerny, S.J., Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development; Professor Anna Rowlands, Political Theology, including the Social Doctrine of the Church and the Theological Ethics of Human Migration, Department of Theology and Religion, Durham University, United Kingdom; Christopher Olah, Co-founder of Anthropic (USA) and Director of Research on the Interpretability of Artificial Intelligence; and Drs. Leocadie Lushombo, PhD in Political Theology and Catholic Social Thought, Jesuit School of Theology/University of Santa Clara, California.

5) The closing remarks will be delivered by the Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin.

6) There will be an address and blessing by Pope Leo XIV.

7) All of the above will be preceded by an atypical off-the-record briefing with Cardinal Michael Czerny, Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development; Monsignor Paul Tighe, Secretary of the Dicastery for Culture and Education; and Father Brendan McGuire, parish priest in Silicon Valley, California, Consultant on the ethical principles and safety of AI.