Magnifica Humanitas: Building Jerusalem or Another Babel?
The National Catholic Register commentary by Stephen Hildebrand (May 28, 2026) offers an enthusiastic appraisal of the encyclical Magnifica Humanitas by the usurper antipope Leo XIV. The article presents the document’s central metaphor of “building” to frame the discussion around artificial intelligence, contrasting a potential “Tower of Babel” (a civilization without God) with the “rebuilding of Jerusalem” (a civilization of love). Hildebrand highlights Leo XIV’s warnings about technocratic culture and the dangers of AI, while emphasizing the document’s “cautious optimism” and its call for education to form “faithful builders” who can master technology rather than be mastered by it. This commentary, far from offering a prophetic warning against the spirit of the age, serves as a sophisticated vehicle for the very modernist errors it claims to transcend, cloaking a naturalistic humanism in the vestments of a faith it systematically empties of its supernatural content.
The Edifice is Built on Sand: A Naturalistic Foundation
The very architecture of the encyclical Magnifica Humanitas, as presented in this commentary, reveals its fatal flaw. The central metaphor of “building” is not rooted in the unchanging foundation of Christ and His Church, but in the shifting sands of human progress and adaptation. The question posed is not “What does God command?” but “What kind of civilization will these technologies serve?” This is the language of the world, not of the Church. It presupposes that the Church’s primary role is to serve as a helpful consultant to human civilization, rather than to teach, govern, and lead souls to eternal salvation. As Pope Pius XI unequivocally stated in his encyclical Quas Primas, the reign of Christ the King is not an optional metaphor for social organization; it is a dogmatic truth: “His reign, namely, extends not only to Catholic nations… but His reign encompasses also all non-Christians, so that most truly the entire human race is subject to the authority of Jesus Christ.” The encyclical’s focus on “building” a better world through technology and education is a classic modernist error, a Pelagian reliance on human effort divorced from the necessity of grace, the sacraments, and the authoritative teaching of the true Church. It is the “cult of man” condemned by the pre-conciliar Magisterium, dressed in the language of digital-age concerns.
The “Magnificence” of Man vs. the Glory of God
The title itself, Magnifica Humanitas, is a revealing symptom of the post-conciliar revolution’s core heresy. It places “humanity” at the center of its reflection, a humanity understood in its natural, created state, rather than in its supernatural destiny. This is a direct echo of the modernist error condemned by Pope St. Pius X in Lamentabili Sane Exitu, which rejects the proposition that “the progress of sciences requires a reform of the concept of Christian doctrine concerning God, creation, Revelation, the Person of the Incarnate Word, and Redemption” (Proposition 64). The encyclical’s call to recognize the “dignity of every human person” and the “magnificence of the human person” is not grounded in the theological virtues or the redemptive work of Christ, but in a vague, humanistic anthropology. Where is the clarion call to recognize the infinite dignity of God, the King of Kings? Where is the reminder that true human dignity is found only in the state of sanctifying grace and in submission to the divine will? The article’s author, Stephen Hildebrand, correctly notes that the encyclical warns against a society “spiritually hollow,” yet the proposed remedy is not a return to the sacramental life, prayer, and penance, but rather a better “formation” through education. This is the modernist heresy of “vital immanence” described in Pascendi Dominici Gregis, where the solution to spiritual problems is sought in human action and social reform, rather than in the supernatural order established by Christ. The “civilization of love” spoken of is a naturalistic utopia, not the City of God.
The False Prophets of Education and the Hermeneutic of Continuity
The commentary’s focus on education as the primary tool for navigating the AI crisis is a perfect example of the modernist obsession with “formation” over doctrine. Hildebrand outlines the encyclical’s four tasks for education: strengthening the family, ensuring universal access, forming teachers, and inculcating a love for truth. While these may sound benign, they are stripped of their proper theological context. The “family” is not presented as the domestic church, ordered towards the salvation of souls and the propagation of the faith under the authority of the Church, but as a bulwark against a “technocratic culture.” The “truth” to be loved is not the revealed truth of the Catholic faith, immutable and guarded by the Magisterium, but a vague, almost philosophical concept of “truth itself.” This is the “evolution of dogmas” condemned by the Syllabus of Errors, which states that “truth changes with man, because it develops with him, in him, and through him” (Proposition 58). The call to form “teachers capable of guiding students” is not a call for teachers grounded in scholastic philosophy and the catechism of the Council of Trent, but for those who can help students “engage with [technologies] responsibly, critically and creatively.” This is the language of secular pedagogy, not of Catholic formation. The entire educational project proposed is a humanistic endeavor, designed to produce competent technicians for the “Kingdom of Man,” not saints for the Kingdom of God.
The Silence of the Supernatural and the Primacy of the Natural
Perhaps the most damning indictment of both the encyclical and this commentary is their profound silence on the supernatural order. There is no mention of the necessity of grace for salvation. There is no warning about the state of mortal soul or the reality of hell. There is no call to prayer, penance, or the sacraments as the indispensable means of navigating the spiritual dangers of this new age. The “dangers” identified are entirely worldly: “oppression,” “exploitation,” “surveillance,” “consolidation of power.” These are real evils, but they are not the primary concern of the Church. The primary concern of the Church is the salvation of souls. The greatest danger of the AI age is not that it will be used for oppression, but that it will further alienate humanity from God, making them believe they can achieve happiness and fulfillment through their own creations, thereby forgetting their Creator. This is the original sin of pride, the very sin of the builders of Babel. The encyclical, as presented, offers a purely naturalistic response to a spiritual crisis. It is a blueprint for building a more efficient, more just, more “human” Tower of Babel, all while using the language of Jerusalem. It is the “pest of indifferentism” condemned by Pope Pius IX in the Syllabus of Errors, which claims that “Catholics may approve of the system of educating youth unconnected with Catholic faith and the power of the Church” (Proposition 48).
Conclusion: Rejecting the Blueprint of the Antichrist
The encyclical Magnifica Humanitas, as interpreted by this commentary, is a document entirely characteristic of the conciliar sect. It is a masterclass in modernist rhetoric: it uses the language of faith to promote a purely humanistic agenda. It speaks of “building” but rejects the one true Foundation, Jesus Christ. It speaks of “truth” but empties it of its supernatural, revealed content. It speaks of “the human person” but forgets that this person is a creature made for God, whose only true fulfillment is found in communion with Him through His one true Church. The “faithful builders” it calls for are not the soldiers of Christ, armed with the sword of the Spirit and the armor of God, but rather compliant workers for the New World Order, skilled in the tools of the digital age but ignorant of the tools of salvation. The faithful must reject this blueprint entirely. Our task is not to build a better world with AI, but to save our souls and the souls of others through the immutable teachings of the Catholic faith, the sacraments, and the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary. As Pope Pius XI taught, there is no true peace, no true progress, no true civilization outside the reign of Christ the King. Any “building” project that does not begin and end with Him is not a rebuilding of Jerusalem, but the construction of another Babel, destined for divine confusion and ruin. The only “artificial intelligence” that matters is the wisdom that comes from above, which is “first of all pure; then peaceable, gentle, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy” (James 3:17).
Source:
Wanted: Faithful Builders for the AI Construction Site (ncregister.com)
Date: 28.05.2026