“Know that I am with you always”
Ascension of the Lord
Cobh
17 May 2026
My friends,
Artificial Intelligence, we are told, will change the world, the way we live and work entirely. Quite what way we, nor they (the experts) can be sure. All we know is that vast sums of money are being invested both by the tech companies and investment funds in order to be able to take advantage of the opportunities as they arise.
The reality is that Artificial Intelligence – AI is already shaping much of how we live and work. To date the one thing that is happening as we speak, is the impact that it is having on employment. Even the very companies that are using the technology are now beginning to lay off the employees who helped develop the new processes. It is very much like turkeys voting for Christmas! We need to remind ourselves that this pattern of workers being made redundant due to new technology has been happening since the Industrial Revolution of the 19th Century.
What you might ask what has Artificial Intelligence to do with the Ascension of the Lord which we mark today. In short – it is the value placed on the dignity and worth of each person and their presence to the world and the Lord’s presence to the world.
The Ascension of the Lord was a profound experience for the disciples who walked with the Lord on his mission of teaching and healing. His presence to them was a continued grace and blessing. Those who witnessed the ‘appearances’ of the Risen Lord came to understand that things had changed. Jesus had not abandoned them but would be with them in a new way. He prepared them for the Spirits coming which would only come about with his parting from them in the Ascension.
The essence of that parting was mission. “Why are you men from Galilee standing here looking into the sky?... Go, therefore, make disciples of all nations … teach them to observe all the commands I gave you. And know that I am with you always.” That has been the mission of the Church across the centuries. It is still the Church’s mission. Across the centuries and in a diversity of cultures and places that mission has had to adapt and adjust to different situations.
Right now, globally, while there are a great diversity of nations and cultures – computer technology has been transforming peoples lives for better or worse. Artificial Intelligence is now the cutting edge of this technological development.
It is no surprise then that Pope Leo XIV on his very first words to the Church and the world addressed his concern about the impact of this new phase of technology may have on people’s lives. It is a key question – who controls it and for what intent and purpose?
This Ascension Day is one in which the Church reflects on Social Communications – it’s one in which Pope Leo reflects more in depth on the effect that Artificial Intelligence is having in ourselves individually through our phone use, on our families, and on relationships. His key concern is the human person, the individual presence and voice. AI can imitate the human face, clone the human voice, simulate affection, produce convincing falsehoods and shape what people see, think and feel. These are the threats.
Pope Leo affirms the technology as a gift of creativity and imagination and a potential great blessing for humanity. However, there are too many examples already of the manipulation of people and nations to make us fearful and guarded. The same moral principles need to be applied to AI as in every other area of life. Technology at its best is a wonderful path to encounter and relationship. Technology becomes dangerous when it becomes a substitute for real presence, real friendship and real communion.
