The Ethical Challenges of Artificial Intelligence: The Role of the Catholic Church in Shaping a Personalist Framework for AI Ethics

Abstract

Artificial intelligence (AI) is generating unprecedented technological opportunities while raising profound ethical, anthropological, and social challenges. This article examines the role of the Catholic Church in shaping AI ethics within the tension between technological progress and a personalist understanding of the human person. The study employs a hermeneutical approach and critical analysis of the scholarly literature and key documents of the Church’s Magisterium, including Gaudium et Spes, Laudato si’, Laudate Deum, and the Rome Call for AI Ethics. It also compares Catholic ethical reflection with selected secular frameworks, namely the OECD Principles on Artificial Intelligence, the UNESCO Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence, and the European Union AI Act. The findings indicate that Catholic reflection on AI is grounded in an integral personalist anthropology that emphasises human dignity, the common good, moral responsibility, and the relational nature of the person as fundamental criteria for evaluating technology. While secular regulatory models primarily focus on safety, transparency, and accountability, the Catholic perspective contributes a deeper anthropological and theological dimension rooted in the concept of imago Dei. The article proposes a model of ‘personalist ethics of co-creation’ that integrates contemporary AI ethics standards with a Christian vision of human responsibility. Such an approach may complement existing legal and technical regulations and promote a more human-centred development and use of AI.