By Joshua McElwee and Elizabeth Pineau
PARIS, Sept 25 (Reuters) - Pope Leo urged the world to reconsider the development of artificial intelligence, opening his four-day visit to France on Friday with a fervent warning that AI could create a future where "a paradise of machines" takes control of the Earth.
The first US pope, who has made sounding the alarm about the risks of AI a central part of his 16-month papacy, put the issue at the heart of his visit to France, the first by a pope in nearly 20
years.
"If we are to avoid losing our humanity amid a 'paradise of machines' invading and conditioning our daily lives, there is an urgent need for education in ethical discernment," he said, speaking under the gilded ceilings of the Elysee Palace.
The pope also strongly reiterated the Church's pro-life teachings, criticizing initiatives to allow assisted dying for those who have incurable illnesses, two months after French politicians approved such a measure.
"I am concerned … by those trends in society that risk turning science and technology into profit-driven ventures promoting genetic manipulation, surrogacy, the trade in human organs or the possibility of arranging one’s own death," he said.
Leo, on a whirlwind three-city visit to France, will also seek to repair the Church's standing there after abuse scandals sparked nationwide shock, and is also expected to lay out a vision for the future of Europe in a speech on Monday.
'MESSAGE OF PEACE'
Leo was greeted at the Paris Orly airport, under a clear blue sky, by President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte, and by children who sang for him and asked for autographs. During his visit, he will travel to the famed Catholic shrine at Lourdes, in the southwest, and to Metz, on the German border.
Leo was due to lead a prayer service in Paris on Friday at the restored Notre-Dame cathedral, in the first visit by a pope since a devastating fire nearly destroyed the Gothic masterpiece in 2019.
Telling reporters on the plane to Paris that he was coming to convey a message of peace, Leo added: "It is a message which at this time, as we all may know, is particularly important."
People lining the streets Leo was due to pass through on his way to the Elysee held up phones and waved flags and signs.
"He brings a message of peace and hope that is very, very positive. His visit to France sends a wonderful signal to the country," a Catholic passer-by, Antoine Barxias-Casties, said in front of Notre-Dame cathedral on the eve of Leo's visit.
Next on Leo's agenda on Friday is a speech to staff at the headquarters of the UN culture and education body, UNESCO, which is facing budget shortfalls after US President Donald Trump withdrew from the agency in 2025.
The first US pope attracted Trump's ire earlier this year after criticizing the Iran war.
Asked about Trump's attempt to bar CNN and several other outlets from the White House, Leo, aboard the plane to Paris, reaffirmed his support for freedom of the press, saying all were welcome to cover his visit.
SECULAR NATION
France, a secular nation where the separation of church and state is enshrined in a 1905 law, has witnessed a steady decline in affiliation to the Catholic Church during the post-war era, mirroring a trend in other traditionally Catholic countries.
Although the French Bishops' Conference points to an increase in baptisms of adults, a report published by the official statistics agency INSEE showed that only 25% of French 18-to-49-year-olds identified as Catholic, compared with 43% a decade earlier.
Leo's visit comes as Catholic leaders in France have been at odds with the government over the 2024 enshrining of a right to abortion in the French constitution, a world first, and the passage of the law legalizing assisted dying for adults with incurable illnesses.
POPE TO MEET ABUSE SURVIVORS
Local Church leaders hope the pope's visit will repair the Church's standing after a crushing 2021 report found that some 330,000 French children had been abused by Catholic clergy and lay leaders over seven decades.
French bishops have since introduced compensation and safeguarding measures, but survivors have continued to press Church leaders to demonstrate accountability.
"Leo bears the immense responsibility of 'declaring enough is enough'," Alain Esquerre, 66, a spokesperson for victims at the Notre-Dame de Bétharram Catholic institution, told Reuters.
The pope will meet seven French victims of abuse by Catholic clergy on Sunday in Lourdes.
(Additional reporting by Richard Lough, Makini Brice; writing by Joshua McElwee and Ingrid Melander; editing by Alex Richardson)
