> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://blog.adriaanmolendijk.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://blog.adriaanmolendijk.com/posts/magnifica_humanitas.md). # What Magnifica Humanitas Says to Security Professionals > **Last updated:** August 4, 2026 ## What is Magnifica Humanitas? It has been almost two months since Pope Leo signed Magnifica Humanitas at Saint Peter's. Magnifica Humanitas is an Encyclical letter, i.e. an open letter from the Church on a particular topic, addressing, among other topics, the artificial intelligence (AI) that is transforming our world. In this post I would like to reflect on multiple thoughts shared by the Encyclical letter, its applicability to cybersecurity, to technology, and to us as individuals. ## 1. AI can be steered away from the common good. Encyclical (no. 4): "Over the centuries, technological development has significantly improved the living conditions of humanity. At the same time, each phase of progress has also revealed the ambiguity of tools that can cause harm when not oriented toward the good." For us cybersecurity professionals, the attacker-defender paradigm remains. We defenders aim to sufficiently secure our software and systems to prevent attackers from taking advantage of vulnerabilities and weaknesses. This was the case before the emergence of AI and will surely be after. How AI is affecting the paradigm is that (as outlined later in the same paragraph): it is opening up a horizon extending in directions that are imaginable but not yet fully predictable. Exploits now appear on average a week before a patch is available, 27-year-old vulnerabilities are being detected in OpenBSD, and specialized ransomware companies are now reporting that affected victims are no longer negotiating with human operators. Yes, AI will have plenty of applications and improve the living conditions of humanity. But at the same time, threat actors will use this power, steering it away from the common good. It is incumbent upon us security professionals to sufficiently understand how much AI will truly enable attackers tactically, in order to limit the impact of adversarial abuse. ## 2. We must avoid humanizing AI. Encyclical (no. 99): "These \[AI] systems merely imitate certain functions of human intelligence. In doing so, they often surpass human intelligence in speed and computational capacity, offering tangible benefits across many fields." That is, we must avoid confusing AI output, a data processing output, with what human intelligence really is. As outlined in the same paragraph, AI does not undergo experiences, does not possess a body, does not feel joy or pain, does not mature through relationships and does not know from within what love, work, friendship or responsibility mean. Unfortunately we're seeing AI being used as a substitute for human intelligence or its interactions too often. I'm witnessing firsthand practitioners hook up their agent to talk for them in direct messaging applications, and I've even witnessed developers refer to their agent as a "he", as if it's a human person working for them. Yes, using AI agents no doubt significantly improves developer productivity, as we can e.g. parallelize work streams in ways we have not been able to before. But these tools are, as the Encyclical describes, a form of statistical adaptation based on data and feedback, not lived experience as human persons have it. Additionally, terms such as 'learning,' as applied to ML models, denote something fundamentally different from the learning experience of, say, you and me. I would reiterate the following (no. 99 again): "They \[AI] may imitate language, behavior and analytical skills, or even simulate empathy and understanding, but they do not understand what they produce, for they lack the affective, relational and spiritual perspective through which human beings grow in wisdom." ## 3. The advancements in AI don't just affect technology. Encyclical (no. 102): "The use of AI is never a purely technical matter: when it enters processes that affect people’s lives, it touches on rights, opportunities, status and freedom." Outlined later in the same paragraph, when AI affects impactful and sensitive decision making (which it already does), we enter new forms of exclusion. Globally, we risk excluding small corporations from accessing the latest advanced models they can use to secure their systems, policy makers risk using AI for moral matters that would contradict the inalienable dignity of the human person, and we as businesses risk not updating our processes in a way that would ensure accountability in case of AI misuse or abuse. The Encyclical goes on in no. 111 to emphasize our ethical responsibilities as technology professionals. Every design choice we make reflects a vision of humanity, as we are participating in the creation of something. "Just as the creator of an artistic or literary work must consider the values it conveys, so developers are called to embed values in their projects with due seriousness: with transparency, responsibility toward affected communities and careful attention to ensuring that what is being cultivated is a genuine good." ## Next? This article is too short to go further into depth on these specific thoughts, or outline all the other hidden gems shared by the letter. I hope this preview serves as an invitation to read further, and that the letter can guide us in how we manage this technical power going forward. ## References * --- # Agent Instructions This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com. ## Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. 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