Image via Marco Iacobucci Epp / Shutterstock.
This Morning Air episode with John Morales and Mark Mastroianni explores how we can navigate this AI and digital world with discernment and peace.
AI is here, but is it holy?
John starts off with the obvious: AI is everywhere now: our phones, our schools, our jobs, and our health. But the real question is not “Can AI answer our questions?”, but rather:
🤔 Can it serve the common good and uplift the human soul, or is it just another flashy algorithm sucking up our time?
Meet the Pope with a Tech Plan: Leo XIV
Just like his namesake stepped up during the Industrial Revolution, Pope Leo XIV is stepping in during the Digital Revolution.
Why’d he pick “Leo”? Because this new age of machines and algorithms needs a reminder:
🧠✨ “Technology is a tool… not a replacement for the beauty and infinite worth of the human soul.”
Can we get an amen?
👶 AI vs. Our Kids: Who’s Winning?
Pope Leo isn’t just worried about chatbots replacing teachers. He’s laser-focused on how AI impacts kids and young adults, especially in how it shapes:
🧠 How they think
💔 How they relate to others
😵💫 How glued they are to screens
John and Mark remind us: Algorithms aren’t neutral. They’re designed to be sticky, to keep our eyeballs scrolling and our souls scrolling away from the good, true, and beautiful.
💡 But there’s hope: More parents and educators are pushing back. 🙌 There’s a movement to ditch the screens and rediscover real-life wonder.
✝️ Blessed Carlo Acutis
They mention our millennial future saint and spiritual tech guide, Blessed Carlo Acutis. He loved the internet… but loved Jesus way more.
His message:
👟💒 “Get off the screen, go outside, go see Eucharistic miracles, and live a holy, real life.”
Yes, please.
🧍♂️📖 Human Wisdom > Artificial Intelligence
AI might be able to mimic priests or teachers (gulp), but it can’t imitate true wisdom, love, or holiness.
Pope Leo XIV warns:
🗣️ “We must never replace face-to-face transmission of wisdom.”
Mark adds that real transformation doesn’t come from bots; it comes from:
👥 One-on-one conversations
🙌 Small groups sharing faith and struggles
🎨 Creative, Spirit-filled collaboration
AI can serve us… it just can’t save us.
Mark says the future actually belongs to humans, not machines. AI will automate the busywork, freeing us up to be more human:
🤝 More connection
🧠 More real thinking
❤️ More service
✝️ More soul-to-soul holiness
So… What Can You Do?
✅ Talk about AI with your friends, family, and parish.
✅ Limit screen time, especially for your kids.
✅ Get in the room: small groups, Bible studies, youth nights, coffee chats.
✅ Stay close to Jesus, the true source of wisdom, not just information.
🌟 Want to stay human in a world of robots?
Then cling to what’s eternal: the Church, the sacraments, real relationships, and Christ.
🔁 Share this with your tech-curious friends… even the ones glued to TikTok.
📱 And remember: You’re not just data. You’re a soul.
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