EWTN News portal reports that on May 11, 2026, the usurper Robert Prevost, known as Leo XIV, during an audience with the Vatican Observatory Foundation, declared that “the principal threat facing both religion and science today is the denial of the very existence of objective truth.” He further lamented the “irresponsible exploitation of both people and the natural world,” emphasizing the Church’s commitment to “rigorous and honest science” and the role of astronomy in evoking “wonder.” While superficially appealing, this statement, when scrutinized through the lens of integral Catholic doctrine, reveals a profound Modernist equivocation that subtly undermines the supernatural mission of the Church, reduces her prophetic voice to mere environmentalism, and implicitly denies the absolute, revealed Truth of God in favor of a naturalistic “objective truth” accessible to human reason alone.
The Modernist Heresy of “Objective Truth” Without Christ
The very premise of Leo XIV’s address – that the “principal threat” is the “denial of the very existence of objective truth” – is a hallmark of Modernist equivocation. While the Church unequivocally affirms the existence of objective truth, she does so not as a philosophical abstraction, but as the very Person of Jesus Christ, who declared, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life” (John 14:6). To speak of “objective truth” divorced from its divine source and ultimate end is to fall into the very rationalism and naturalism that the Church has consistently condemned.
Pope Pius IX, in his Syllabus of Errors (1864), explicitly condemned the notion that “human reason, without any reference whatsoever to God, is the sole arbiter of truth and falsehood, and of good and evil; it is law to itself, and suffices, by its natural force, to secure the welfare of men and of nations” (Proposition 3). Leo XIV’s emphasis on “objective truth” as a shared ground between “religion and science” subtly implies that truth is something external to and independent of Divine Revelation, a neutral territory where faith and reason can meet on equal terms. This is a direct contradiction of Catholic teaching, which holds that Divine Revelation is the ultimate source of all truth, and that faith, while not contrary to reason, transcends it. As St. Pius X articulated in Pascendi Dominici Gregis, the Modernists “apply the name of faith to that first act by which the intellect assents to revealed truth, but they make it depend on the will, and thus make it a matter of sentiment and feeling, rather than an intellectual assent to objective truth.” By framing the threat as a denial of “objective truth” in a general sense, Leo XIV avoids the far more critical denial of supernatural truth, the denial of Christ Himself as the sole Truth, and the denial of the Church’s infallible Magisterium as its guardian.
The Church’s Mission: Supernatural Salvation, Not Naturalistic Environmentalism
Leo XIV’s statement that “too many in our world refuse to acknowledge what both science and the Church clearly teach: that we bear a solemn responsibility for the care of our planet and for the well-being of those who inhabit it, especially the most vulnerable, whose lives are threatened by the irresponsible exploitation of both people and the natural world” is a stark example of the Church’s mission being reduced to naturalistic humanism. While the Church acknowledges the natural law and the duty to care for creation, her primary and essential mission is the salvation of souls, the preaching of the Gospel, and the administration of the sacraments for the attainment of eternal life.
Pope Pius XI, in his encyclical Quas Primas (1925), established the Feast of Christ the King precisely to remind the world that “the Kingdom of our Redeemer encompasses all men” and that “not only private individuals, but also rulers and governments have the duty to publicly honor Christ and obey Him.” He lamented the “secularism of our times, so-called laicism, its errors and wicked endeavors,” which began with “the denial of Christ the Lord’s reign over all nations.” Leo XIV’s focus on “care for our planet” and “well-being of those who inhabit it” as a primary teaching of the Church, while ignoring the far more pressing spiritual dangers of sin, apostasy, and the loss of faith, is a clear symptom of the “spirit of Vatican II” that prioritizes temporal concerns over eternal ones. It is a subtle but effective way of diverting attention from the true “irresponsible exploitation” – the exploitation of souls by error, heresy, and the denial of God’s laws. The Church’s “rigorous and honest science” is valuable only insofar as it leads to a deeper understanding of God’s creation and His ultimate Truth, not when it becomes an end in itself or a substitute for supernatural charity.
The “Wonder” of Creation Without the Creator’s Law
The usurper’s praise for astronomy, stating that “it awakens in us both admiration and a healthy sense of proportion” and that “contemplating the heavens invites us to view our fears and failures in the light of God’s immensity,” is a classic Modernist trope. While the Church has always encouraged the study of the natural world as a means to appreciate God’s handiwork (cf. Romans 1:20), this appreciation must always lead to the adoration of the Creator and a deeper understanding of His revealed law.
St. Pius X, in Lamentabili Sane Exitu (1907), condemned the Modernist proposition that “the Church is an enemy of the progress of natural and theological sciences” (Proposition 57). However, he also condemned the idea that “philosophy is to be treated without taking any account of supernatural revelation” (Proposition 14). Leo XIV’s emphasis on “wonder” and “admiration” without explicitly linking it to the necessity of faith, obedience to God’s commandments, and the ultimate purpose of creation – the salvation of souls – is a subtle but dangerous omission. It reduces the contemplation of the heavens to a mere aesthetic or intellectual exercise, rather than a profound act of faith that leads to conversion and holiness. The “light pollution” he laments, while a genuine concern for astronomers, is presented as an “eloquent image of sin itself,” yet without defining sin in its true theological sense – a transgression of God’s law. This vagueness allows for a naturalistic interpretation of “sin” as merely an impediment to scientific observation, rather than a moral offense against the Divine Majesty.
The “Restless Yearning for God” Without the Church’s Sacraments
Finally, Leo XIV’s concluding exhortation that “the desire to better understand creation is but a reflection of that restless yearning for God that dwells in the heart of every human being” is a profound theological error when divorced from the necessity of the Church and her sacraments. While it is true that man is naturally oriented towards God, Catholic teaching unequivocally states that this yearning can only be fulfilled through faith in Jesus Christ and membership in His one true Church, outside of which there is no salvation (Extra Ecclesiam nulla salus).
Pope Pius IX, in his Syllabus of Errors, condemned the proposition that “man may, in the observance of any religion whatever, find the way of eternal salvation, and arrive at eternal salvation” (Proposition 16) and that “good hope at least is to be entertained of the eternal salvation of all those who are not at all in the true Church of Christ” (Proposition 17). Leo XIV’s statement, by implying that a “restless yearning for God” can be satisfied merely by “understanding creation” through science, subtly undermines the necessity of the Church’s supernatural means of grace. It suggests that a naturalistic pursuit of knowledge can, in itself, lead to God, thereby diminishing the absolute necessity of Divine Revelation, the sacraments, and the Church’s Magisterium. This is a direct echo of the Modernist error condemned by St. Pius X, who taught that “revelation was merely man’s self-awareness of his relationship to God” (Proposition 20, Lamentabili). The true “restless yearning for God” can only be quenched by the living waters of Divine Grace, dispensed through the Most Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and the sacraments of the true Church, not by the dry speculations of modern science, however “rigorous and honest” they may be.
In conclusion, Leo XIV’s address, while cloaked in seemingly benign language about “objective truth” and “care for the planet,” is a subtle yet potent manifestation of Modernist thought. It subtly redefines the Church’s mission, reduces her supernatural truths to naturalistic concerns, and implicitly denies the absolute necessity of the Church and her sacraments for salvation. It is a call not to the fullness of Catholic Truth, but to a vague, humanistic “truth” that ultimately leads away from the immutable doctrines of the Faith.
Source:
Pope warns main threat common to religion and science is denial of objective truth (ewtnnews.com)
Date: 11.05.2026