Neither the Sum of What We Have, Nor Algorithms, Nor Matter Assembled at Random: What Are We? Two Questions Posed in Pope Leo XIV’s Address to University Students
A UEFA referee has a background in theology He balances duties on the field with academic work His dual roles highlight the intersection of sport and faith The article discusses his motivations and impact on officiating
5 months ago
Pope Leo XIV’s address to the students and faculty of Rome’s La Sapienza University centered on two fundamental questions—“Who are you?” and “What kind of world are we leaving behind?”—and called for a renewed sense of human dignity, peace, and ecological responsibility amid modern challenges such as war, militarisation, artificial‑intelligence, and climate change1.
The Pope warned that young people are often reduced to numbers and algorithms, emphasizing that humanity is “a desire, not an algorithm.” He urged students to recognise their identity as relational beings shaped by language, culture, and friendships, and to answer the personal question of who they truly are1.
Leo XIV condemned the surge in global military spending, describing it as a threat to education, health, and genuine security. He linked the escalation of warfare with new technologies, including AI, and appealed for a “radical ‘yes’ to life” that prioritises diplomacy and justice over armament1.
Referencing Laudato Si’, the Pope highlighted the ongoing climate crisis and the failure to translate good intentions into effective action. He encouraged students to transform anxiety into prophetic engagement for environmental stewardship and to help build a future that respects creation1.
The address praised La Sapienza’s commitment to inclusive education—such as the humanitarian corridor to Gaza—and called on professors to view teaching as a charitable act that shapes conscience, justice, and the pursuit of truth. He urged educators to trust and nurture their students, linking academic work with moral formation1.
Concluding with an invitation to collaborate, Leo XIV asked the university community to become architects of peace, combining study, research, and action to construct a more humane world. He offered his prayers and blessing, emphasizing hope for a new, just future1.
How does Pope Leo XIV define human identity?
Pope Leo XIV presents human identity as something received, not invented: a person is created, willed, loved by God, and therefore possesses an ontological dignity that must guide how society, culture, and technology treat every human being.
For Pope Leo XIV, the deepest ground of who a person is lies in the fact that each human being exists because they are “willed, created, and loved by God”. This is called an “ontological dignity”—that is, dignity rooted in being human itself, not in achievements, usefulness, or social status.
He applies this to modern contexts such as medicine and AI: technological progress must not erase the person’s irreplaceable value, because the human person is not replaceable by tools or “soulless” systems.
Pope Leo XIV repeatedly describes authentic identity as something formed through love and fundamental human ties. In a consumerist culture, he warns, “loneliness becomes a business,” and people lose the capacity to become themselves fully; only through love can inner life become profound and identity become strong.
He links this to family life and social solidarity, and he also connects identity to the “human person and society” being illuminated so that people can “discover their own identity.”
In short: human identity is not merely individual preference; it is the person in communion—with other persons and ultimately with God.
Pope Leo XIV holds that the Gospel’s first social service is to “shine a light on the human person and society” so that, “illuminated by Christ and his word,” people can discover:
So, identity includes not only “what I am,” but also what I am for—a purpose that culminates in communion with God and with one another.
Pope Leo XIV emphasizes that people cannot truly know their identity without attending to bonds with preceding generations. Citing Pope Francis, he states that “no one can truly know their deepest identity… without attending to the bonds that link them to preceding generations,” and that historical study preserves “the flame of collective conscience.”
He also describes identity as tied to place and concrete life: even with human mobility, identity is not erased because each person has “special ties” to places that “they owe their identity” in a “very special way,” and peace grows in “geographical, historical and spiritual bonds.”
Pope Leo XIV frames the Church’s mission as defending the human person and promoting “integral development” that respects human dignity and “authentic identity”, oriented to full communion with the Triune God and among ourselves.
He warns that modern ideologies and even powerful technologies can reduce humanity:
Putting these strands together, Pope Leo XIV effectively defines human identity as:
Human identity, for Pope Leo XIV, is therefore not a self-made brand but a received vocation: to live the truth of who you are before God, in communion with others, and with a destiny that technology, ideology, or loneliness must never be allowed to override.