In his recent
ground-breaking encyclical, Magnifica
Humanitas, Pope Leo
XIV opens by referring to the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1–9), presenting
humanity as facing a pivotal choice:
to construct a new Tower of Babel or to build the city in which God and humanity dwell together.
He speaks of the
enormous challenges of new technologies, including artificial intelligence,
which have the capacity to bring about both great good and great harm. If we
seek to build a city based on domination, self-interest and pride - a society
without love or dignity - we build on sand.
The Church is not yet
the fullness of the City of God, but it points toward it and already
participates in it through communities where authentic love is lived. We are
invited to build places of love not characterised by exclusion or closed
structures, but by openness and welcome - communities in which the Beatitudes
are lived out each day.
In the Eucharist,
Christ reveals true humanity, opening our eyes to the self-giving love shown on
Calvary and to the message of hope and renewal contained in his Word. The
Eucharist stands as a direct challenge to every modern ‘City of Babel’ with its
overreach and claims of self-sufficiency. This is so because, in the Eucharist,
we are formed as a living community - called, nourished and sent out to live
the Good News. There we encounter life as gift and people as sisters and
brothers not as units of data or mere consumers. We are there for one another.
We
are not disembodied or digitalised fragments of humanity. The Eucharist is both
the sign and the instrument of communion among us. Through it we learn to speak
a shared ‘language’ of love shaped by the values of the Gospel.
Here is a suggested aide
mémoire on our eucharistic journey:
People matter.
Faith works.
God reigns.
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