"Science without conscience ruins everyone's lives" and "technology without a soul does not truly improve life," Pope Leo XIV stated in his message to young students in Chiclayo, urging them to resist technological paradigms and instead use science to "reduce social distances and heal society's wounds," and to value Christ as the Truth.
At the Santo Toribio de Mogrovejo Catholic University in this Lambayeque region city, the Supreme Pontiff also called on higher education professors to translate their scientific expertise into "works of social justice, especially for the benefit of the poorest and in caring for creation."
"Both academics and students are called upon to exercise critical thinking: always seek the wisdom that neither machines nor computer programs can possess," Pope Leo XIV stated.
Drawing an analogy between what is happening in much of the world and the geography of Peru—his second homeland—His Holiness noted that "today, in fact, deserts are not only the arid expanses of Lambayeque."
In his view, these are now "the new moral and civic illiteracies that exclude the poor."
Addressing the students, Pope Leo XIV urged them to seek "the wisdom that neither machines nor computer programs can possess."
"Only in this way will technological progress serve our integral development, safeguarding the dignity of every person and promoting the common good," he added.
Let progress not be a privilege for the few
In the Holy Father's view, "progress that is indifferent to justice and workers' dignity becomes, in fact, a mechanism of oppression and exclusion."
Against this backdrop, he added, "the Catholic university therefore has a duty to remind people, in the public and political spheres, that science without conscience ruins everyone's lives."
In line with the thinking set out in his encyclical Magnifica Humanitas, published last May, the Supreme Pontiff warned that today "the most lethal risk is submission to the technocratic paradigm," as it "reduces reality to material data, with efficiency as its supreme value."
The Pope stated that, since scientific progress is a positive fruit of human intelligence, it should not be mistaken for "a privilege for millionaires who seek immortality, while entire peoples suffer misery and oppression."
"Thus, we are being sold the illusion of human beings optimized by cybernetics and biotechnology," the Holy Father warned.
"In the face of this mirage, Christian anthropology reminds us that limitation is not a manufacturing defect, but rather the condition for human greatness," he added.
Emphasizing transcendence based on privilege "confines us to selfishness and leads us to discard the weak," the Pope pointed out.
The example of Saint Toribio
During his address, Pope Leo XIV also highlighted the life and work of Saint Toribio de Mogrovejo, who carried out important Catholic missionary work during colonial times in various parts of what is now Peruvian territory.
"During his time, when Indigenous peoples were frequently subjected to exploitation and discrimination, he defended their human dignity with evangelical fervor," Leo XIV emphasized, referring to the saint who was recently officially designated by the Peruvian State as the country's Patron of Human Rights.
In this regard, the Supreme Pontiff recalled that Saint Toribio wrote one of the first catechisms in native languages, such as Quechua and Aymara.
He accomplished this, the Pope added, despite difficult conditions and a lack of understanding.
"He experienced physical limitations during his exhausting journeys; he fell ill and suffered from fatigue and the lack of understanding from those in power. Moreover, it was precisely through such a tested life that he transformed the ecclesiastical and social history of an entire country," His Holiness indicated.
"Today, it is up to us to renew his example," he added, addressing the academics and students attending the gathering.
During the gathering, Pope Leo XIV listened to testimonies from students, Church and academic authorities in Chiclayo, including Patricia Campos, rector of the Santo Toribio de Mogrovejo Catholic University.
After this event, the Holy Father headed to Santo Toribio de Mogrovejo School in Chiclayo to have a private dinner with priests from the Diocese of Chiclayo, which he had headed for several years.
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Publicado: 13/11/2026