FLORIDA NEWSWIRE (POMPANO BEACH, Fla.) — The release of Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical letter, “Magnifica Humanitas,” arrives at a defining moment not only for the global Church but for the whole of human civilization, says Dr. Rob Hoskins, President and Co-founder of OneHope. “As artificial intelligence rapidly reshapes communication, learning, relationships, and the very formation of identity, Pope Leo XIV names what the most serious voices across theology, ethics, and technology are beginning to say in unison: the deepest crisis before us is not technological, but anthropological and spiritual,” he says. “We are living through one of the most consequential inflection points in human history.”
Artificial intelligence is reshaping how children and youth learn, how people connect, how truth is formed, and how identity itself is understood. I was invited by Anthropic to participate in a meeting where AI researchers, ethicists, and technologists openly discussed the moral weight of what they are building. What struck me most was not the sophistication of the technology, but the realization that the deepest questions emerging from the AI age are not ultimately technical questions, but theological questions. They are questions of dignity, purpose, truth, formation, and the story we believe our lives are part of.
In a moment like this, the Church cannot stand on the sidelines. We need moral clarity, rooted in the unchanging truth that every person is created in the image of God and carries inherent dignity, worth, and purpose that no algorithm can quantify and no model can replace or improve.
I believe technology can be an extraordinary instrument for good. It can open doors, expand access to God’s Word, strengthen learning, and help us reach the next generation in ways we never imagined possible. But technology was never meant to replace humanity or redefine it. When innovation moves faster than wisdom, people begin serving the systems created to serve them. Technology may assist human flourishing, but it can never replace the God-given role of parents, pastors, mentors, and the local church in the spiritual formation of the next generation.
As the leader of OneHope, a global ministry committed to engaging every child and youth with God’s Word, I believe the Church must guide the next generation to not only develop digital discernment but deep theological wisdom, forming young people who understand truth, human dignity, embodiment, purpose, and community through the lens of Scripture. In the age of AI, this is a foundational part of discipleship.
I affirm the “Magnifica Humanitas” warning against any technology that seeks to transcend or redefine what it means to be human. Human beings are not problems to be optimized away. We are image bearers of God, created for relationship with Him and with one another through Jesus Christ. That truth must be the immovable foundation of every conversation about artificial intelligence.
To global Church leaders: The formation of the next generation is happening right now with or without your voice. The values being embedded in artificial intelligence systems today will shape how billions of children learn, think, and understand what it means to be human for decades to come. You carry the theological wisdom, global reach, and moral authority to speak into this moment. We must convene, collaborate, engage, and refuse to surrender one of the most important formation questions of our time to voices that do not begin with the Author of humanity.
To parents: You remain the most powerful formative influence in your child’s life, more powerful than any platform, model, or algorithm. No technology company, however sophisticated, can replicate what God has entrusted you. Be present and ask the hard questions about what your children are encountering online, in AI tools, and in the digital spaces shaping their self-understanding. Create room in your family’s rhythms for the conversations only you can have about faith, identity, truth, and what it truly means to flourish as a human being made in the image of God. The greatest gift you can give your child in the age of AI is a parent who is fully, unhurriedly, irreplaceably there.
The moment to activate the global Christian community is now. We must move beyond concern into bold, coordinated, Spirit-led action for the sake of the next generation.
ABOUT ROB HOSKINS:
Dr. Rob Hoskins is the President and Co-founder of OneHope. Since becoming president in 2004, he has led the ministry to reach more than 2 billion children and youth with God’s Word through innovative Scripture-engagement tools in print, film, and digital formats. A recognized missions strategist and global connector, Rob also serves as a senior advisor to the World Evangelical Alliance, and a member of the Empowered21 Global Council. He holds a Doctor of Ministry in World Missions and Cross-Cultural Studies and teaches at the Hoskins School of Mission at Southeastern University. Rob and his wife, Kim, share a lifelong passion to “build young leaders and serve great leaders,” and together they cherish their role as parents and grandparents. Learn more at: https://onehope.net/
SUMMARY: [AI]
- AI raises spiritual and ethical questions beyond technology: Dr. Rob Hoskins, President and Co-founder of OneHope, says the rapid rise of artificial intelligence is creating fundamental questions about human dignity, purpose, truth, and identity that are ultimately theological rather than technical.
- Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical emphasizes human dignity: Hoskins praises Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, for warning against technologies that seek to redefine or transcend humanity, stressing that every person is created in the image of God and possesses inherent worth that cannot be replicated by AI.
- Church leaders and parents are urged to take an active role: Hoskins calls on global Christian leaders to engage in shaping the ethical and moral framework surrounding AI, while encouraging parents to remain deeply involved in guiding their children’s understanding of faith, identity, and truth in an increasingly digital world.
- AI should support, not replace, human relationships and discipleship: While acknowledging AI’s potential to expand learning and access to Scripture, Hoskins argues that technology must remain a tool for human flourishing and cannot replace the formative roles of parents, pastors, mentors, and local churches in the spiritual development of the next generation.
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