At Holy Cross Parish in Woollahra, the newest initiative spearheaded by Fr Mirko Integlia is a discussion series on Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, which explores artificial intelligence and the human person, among other key issues facing the world and the church today.
The series aims at helping Catholics navigate the impacts of AI on human dignity, work, relationships and society. The discussion series will occur over three sessions. The first on Friday 26 June at 7pm, will focus on human dignity.
It will be a webinar led by Dr Lorenn Ruster, Researcher in Responsible AI at Australian National University, and Dr Samuel Tranter, Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Christian Ethics and Public Life at the University of Oxford.
The second session on 1 July in the parish’s community room from 6pm details the effects of AI on education and children. It is aimed at families and teachers and will be led by Professor Miriam Tanti, Deputy Dean, School of Education, La Trobe University.
The final session on 9 July at 6pm, also held in the parish, will discuss the possible effects of AI on pastoral work. It will be led by Daniel Ang, Director of the Sydney Centre for Evangelisation.
“Dignity is the essence of the Gospel. Human dignity is at the centre of everything, for the Son of God has become a man, so he has given to humanity a dignity that has no limits,” Fr Integlia told The Catholic Weekly.
“This has always been the passion of the church, where human dignity is central to its message.
“Technology is not neutral; behind technology, there is always power. We need to watch those who have power [as] they may try to use this tool [AI] against the dignity of mankind.”
Fr Integlia said he hoped participants walk away with a better understanding of what AI is.
“The people I talk with believe that AI is only a nice tool to help with preparing a PowerPoint presentation,” he said.
“My only desire is that they are aware of the contents of the letter [Magnifica Humanitas] and of the importance of being aware of what is happening [with the influence of AI].
To register for the talk series, email holycrossbj@gmail.com.
