Artificial Intelligence as a New Modern Areopagi for Evangelization. A Theological Reading of Paragraph 37 of the Encyclical Redemptoris Missio in the Context of Contemporary Digital Culture

Abstract

The emergence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) constitutes one of the most significant cultural phenomena of the twenty-first century. Far from being limited to the technical sphere, AI is profoundly transforming communication, knowledge production, social interaction, and the
understanding of reality. This essay offers a theological reflection on this phenomenon based on paragraph 37 of Saint John Paul II’s encyclical Redemptoris Missio (1990), where the category of “new areopagi” is
introduced as privileged cultural spaces for the Church’s evangelizing mission. The central thesis argues that AI can be understood as one of the new contemporary new areopagi, not because it constitutes a physical place or a specific institution, but because it shapes the cultural environment in which fundamental questions concerning human identity,
freedom, knowledge, and the meaning of existence are currently debated. Drawing upon the Pauline paradigm of the Areopagus of Athens, the magisterial development of the notion of modern areopagi, and the anthropological challenges posed by algorithmic culture, the
essay argues that the Church is called to develop an evangelizing presence capable of critically engaging contemporary technological transformations. Finally, it is maintained that Christian mission in the
digital age requires a discernment that integrates the contributions of AI at the service of the human person without relinquishing the centrality of human dignity, freedom, relationality, and openness to transcendence.