Most Holy Father: I thank God you are safely back in Suite 201 at Domus Sanctae Marthae. Of course, I am far from alone in my concern for your health, and hope there is never a Holy Week while any Servant of the Servants of God are in the hospital.
It was great to see you in documentary filmmaker Gianfranco Rosi’s latest “In Viaggio: The Travels of Pope Francis.” As such a venerable octogenarian, your well-deserved reputation for compassion and humility remains intact onscreen.
At the same time, your recent health issues provide an opportunity to consider who you may yet become.
On the one hand, makers of artificial intelligence see you as “Athleisure Pope,” recently outfitting you in a snappy white puffer jacket. Of course, the whole fake image made me smile, as I suspect it did for you, too. On the other hand, so many online viewers simply took this image as an article of faith. A uniquely contemporary conundrum, right? How I pray we redouble our global efforts to promote natural intelligence.
Seriously, no amount of artificial intelligence will ever resolve the issues you care about most: poverty, war, and the migration crisis. In fact, the apparent threat of out-of-control AI is now so urgent that tech leaders recently pleaded for a moratorium. However, your appeal to the world as a religious leader carries different weight.
If you’re up for it this Sunday, I’d love for your “Urbi et Orbi” blessing to make a direct appeal to your one billion followers. Truly, you must go ex cathedra to address the deus ex machina mentality that AI now brings to everyday life. And more than simply pausing disruptive technology, maybe we need to take a few steps back. After all, the Doomsday Clock is doomier than ever, according to the people who produce the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists.
Ironically, seeing you engage from the Vatican Library with astronauts on the International Space Station involved no travel on your part, but it did highlight a great deal of science and technology. As otherworldly as life on Earth increasingly feels, your groundedness is a gift that keeps giving. I pray for you in my own way, and I pray your papacy will endure for years to come.
In closing, I want you to know that your faith inspires me in ways I cannot articulate. I wish you a Happy Easter and thank you for being who you are.
