Pope Leo called on the world to rethink how AI is being developed, launching his four-day trip to France on Friday with a stark warning that AI could lead to a future in which “a paradise of machines” takes over the planet.
The first American pope has made warning about the dangers of AI a defining theme of his 16-month papacy, and he placed the issue at the center of his visit to France, the first by a pope in almost two decades.
“If we are to avoid losing our humanity amid a ‘paradise of machines’ invading and conditioning our daily lives, there is an urgent need for education in ethical discernment,” he said beneath the gilded ceilings of the Élysée Palace.
The pope also forcefully restated the Church’s pro-life positions and criticized efforts to allow assisted dying for people with incurable illnesses. French lawmakers approved such a measure two months ago.
“I am concerned … by those trends in society that risk turning science and technology into profit-driven ventures promoting genetic manipulation, surrogacy, the trade in human organs or the possibility of arranging one’s own death,” he said.
During his fast-paced tour of three French cities, Leo will also try to restore the Church’s reputation in the country after abuse scandals that shocked the nation. He is expected to present his vision for Europe’s future in a speech on Monday.
A Message of Peace
Under clear blue skies at Paris Orly Airport, Leo was welcomed by President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, as well as by children who sang for him and asked for his autograph.
France’s President Emmanuel Macron sees Pope Leo off after their meeting at the Elysee Palace, next to his wife Brigitte Macron, in Paris, France, 25 September 2026. MOHAMMED BADRA/Pool via REUTERS
Pope Leo shakes hands with French President Emmanuel Macron’s wife Brigitte Macron after his meeting with the president at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, 25 September 2026. MOHAMMED BADRA/Pool via REUTERS
Over the course of the trip, he will visit the famous Catholic shrine of Lourdes in southwestern France and the city of Metz near the German border.
A banner announcing Pope Leo’s visit to Lourdes hangs on the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in the Sanctuary of Lourdes ahead of Pope Leo’s visit to France, August 25, 2026. REUTERS/Manuel Ausloos
On Friday, Leo was scheduled to lead a prayer service at the restored Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris. It will be the first papal visit to the Gothic landmark since a fire nearly destroyed it in 2019.
View of the Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral decorated with Vatican flags in Paris as preparations continue ahead of Pope Leo’s visit to France, September 23, 2026. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier
Speaking to reporters on the flight to Paris, Leo said he was bringing a message of peace, adding: “It is a message which at this time, as we all may know, is particularly important.”
Crowds lined the streets along his route to the Élysée, holding up phones and waving flags and signs.
“He brings a message of peace and hope that is very, very positive. His visit to France sends a wonderful signal to the country,” Antoine Barxias-Casties, a Catholic standing outside Notre-Dame the day before the visit, said.
Later on Friday, Leo is set to address staff at the Paris headquarters of UNESCO, the UN’s cultural and educational agency. UNESCO has been dealing with budget shortfalls since US President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of the organization in 2025.
Pope Leo shakes hands with UNESCO Director-General Khaled El-Enany next to Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça, prefect of the Dicastery for Culture and Education, as he visits the organisation’s headquarters, Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Paris, France. Gregorio Borgia/Pool via REUTERS
Earlier this year, the pope drew Trump’s anger by criticizing the Iran war.
On the plane, Leo was asked about Trump’s effort to block CNN and several other media outlets from the White House. He reaffirmed his support for press freedom, saying everyone was welcome to cover his trip.
A Secular Nation
France, where the separation of church and state has been written into law since 1905, has seen a steady drop in Catholic affiliation since World War II, a pattern also seen in other historically Catholic countries.
The French Bishops’ Conference points to a rise in adult baptisms. However, a report by INSEE, the national statistics agency, found that only 25% of French people aged 18 to 49 identified as Catholic, down from 43% ten years earlier.
The visit also comes amid tensions between French Catholic leaders and the government. The two sides have clashed over the 2024 decision to enshrine the right to abortion in the French constitution, a first worldwide, and over the new law legalizing assisted dying for adults with incurable illnesses.
Meeting With Abuse Survivors
Church leaders in France hope the visit will help rebuild trust after a damning 2021 report found that around 330,000 children in France had been abused by Catholic clergy and lay members over a period of 70 years.
French bishops have since put compensation and child protection measures in place, but survivors continue to push Church leaders to show real accountability.
“Leo bears the immense responsibility of ‘declaring enough is enough’,” Alain Esquerre, 66, a spokesperson for victims at the Catholic school Notre-Dame de Bétharram, told Reuters.
The pope will meet with seven French survivors of clergy abuse in Lourdes on Sunday.
Source: Reuters
