Within a few days of his papacy, he has become the face of AI deepfake content decimation, which, as we know, poses unprecedented challenges. In reality, he overemphasizes the wars of fakes attending the collusion of advanced technologies to rub salt into the deadly fake content barrage.
The most sinister distortion lies in Grandpooperatorai GTV, which turned God into a pardoning machine by blessing all on earth for even the gravest of sins in a 42-minute propaganda piece endorsed by the head of the church and has gathered 230,000 views AS OF YESTERDAY. As a member of the acclaimed team xxx, I always believed that reverent voice that roared, “The clock of heaven is ticking its final seconds… As they paused to give airtime for the computer to deal with the next sentence, he continued, “2025 is not just another year,” which was coming from his mouth, and I am saddened that now I have to eat my words.
“Why wrestle my mind with lack of an answer? If I like trumpets, who wouldn’t appreciate such a masterpiece?”
A Crisis of Credibility That Is Rapidly Explanding
The dissemination of deepfake technology has posed a threat to clergy and laity alike. Recently, a churchgoer audibly recited a self-invented prayer of ‘Pope Leo’ during a church discussion on the papacy, which has worried people. A priest in attendance deemed it “a massive problem.”
All these incidents took place in a mere five hours, showcasing the rampancy at which AI and misinformation operate in tandem.
A church struggling with the ethics of AI and machine learning
It is improbable to fathom that a new pope would step into a world where the first day of their office would also take on an AI crisis. For post-pandemic Vatican City, the announcement does not seem unthought-of. In 2020, the Pontifical Academy for Life initiated the Rome Call for AI Ethics, a campaign aimed towards, and supported by, governments and big tech brands. This advocates for AI systems not to turn to the nefarious practice of exploitation of the people, especially those who require aid the most.
In early 2025, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith and the Dicastery for Culture and Education promulgated a joint document entitled Antiqua et Nova. It underscored the moral governance AI requires ethics rooted in “human dignity, embodiment, and relationality.” It has been even more critical that “the more immediate and pressing concern lies in how individuals with malicious intentions might exploit this technology.”
Pope Francis’ Legacy in a Digital Age
Francis has already begun to respond to the anticipated shifts Pope Leo’s people would bring as the facelift his works commenced with the church. In the address on the 57th World Day of Peace in January 2024, he underlined the unprecedented ways in which technology can shape modern-day life, warning that it “can pose a risk to our survival and endanger our common home.”
In an address for the 58th World Day of Social Communications, he pondered whether humanity will become “fodder for algorithms” or if they will decide to act and grow into wisdom and maturity. With the Church now confronted with rampant digital deceit and manipulation, his forecasts feel ever so prescient.
A Papacy Embedded in Historical Context and Prepared for What Lies Ahead
Pope Leo XIV is noted to have picked his papal name so as to pay homage to Pope Leo XIII, who was known for advancing Catholic social teaching during the First Industrial Revolution. As noted in his first formal address on May 10th, 2025, Leo XIV intends to reincarnate that teaching to cater to what he deems the ‘new industrial revolution’—that being artificial intelligence.
While addressing the public, he stated that AI “holds immense potential” but went on to warn that it “requires…responsibility and discernment…to benefit all of humanity.” To the Pope, this responsibility falls upon everyone equally, “in proportion to his or her age and role in society.”
Reconciling Reality During the Era of Deepfakes
The creation of AI-generated papal speeches does not serve as mere curiosities; instead, they serve as an examination of our media literacy, faith, and critical wisdom examination in our collective existence within a digital milieu. While some may derive solace from feigned messages, the church is more concerned about the risk that reality seems to recede behind a veil of fabrications—it could obliterate the claim to genuineness of its most sacred voices.
With the advancement of modern technologies, the difficulties in question seem likely to intensify. Nevertheless, the early concern of Pope Leo XIV on the ethics of AI suggests a proactive leader not seeking to be caught off guard.
The epoch of sophisticated papal deepfakes could be starting right now—but also marking the Church’s commitment to defend veracity, dignity, and justice in the age of information technology.
