Pope Leo Issues Historic Apology Over Church Role in Slave Trade and Warns of New Forms of Digital Slavery

Past popes have previously apologized for Christians’ involvement in the trans-Atlantic slave trade, but none had formally acknowledged or apologized for the role earlier popes played in granting European rulers authority to subjugate and enslave “infidels.”

History’s first U.S.-born pope, whose family background includes both enslaved people and slave owners, has now issued such an apology in his first encyclical, “Magnifica Humanitas” (Magnificent Humanity), released on Monday.

The document focuses on protecting humanity in an era of growing dependence on artificial intelligence.

In it, Pope Leo connects the trans-Atlantic slave trade to what he describes as emerging modern forms of slavery and colonial exploitation driven by the digital revolution, including the unregulated labor used to source rare minerals for AI chip production.

The Pope’s statement is seen as a response to long-standing appeals from Black American Catholics, activists, and scholars urging the Vatican to acknowledge its historical role in the colonial-era slave trade.