Pope Leo XIV’s  first encyclical , “Magnifica Humanitas” (Magnificent Humanity), the Catholic Church’s authoritative pastoral letter released on May 25, emphasized the need for “safeguarding the human person in the time of artificial intelligence,” including the use of AI in warfare and the threat posed by  killer robots . Building on the church’s  long-held position , Pope Leo wrote that “the decision to use lethal force cannot be delegated to opaque or automated processes, but must remain under effective, self-aware and responsible human control.” The previous pope, Pope Francis, addressed in 2024 the existential threat posed by autonomous weapons systems,  warning that “no machine should ever choose to take the life of a human being.” Both pontiffs have argued that surrendering lethal decisions to algorithms degrades human dignity, and that it insulates politicians and military leaders from the moral weight of their actions.…