Pope Leo XIV Addresses La Sapienza 18 Years After Benedict XVI Visit Was Canceled
Updated
Updated · National Catholic Register · May 14
Pope Leo XIV Addresses La Sapienza 18 Years After Benedict XVI Visit Was Canceled
5 articles · Updated · National Catholic Register · May 14
May 14 marks Pope Leo XIV’s address at Rome’s La Sapienza University, with an 11:30 a.m. speech in the Aula Magna after greetings and a private meeting with the rector.
The visit returns a pope to the campus 18 years after Benedict XVI canceled his own appearance on Jan. 15, 2008, when Italy’s interior minister warned of possible clashes tied to mounting protests.
That backlash centered on Benedict’s earlier citation of philosopher Paul Feyerabend in discussing Galileo, which critics cast as anti-science even though Benedict argued faith and reason should jointly pursue truth.
Only 67 of about 4,500 lecturers and researchers signed the letter opposing Benedict, alongside roughly 100 student protesters, but the episode became a wider symbol of tensions between Catholic thought and secular academic culture.
The Pope condemns Europe's rearmament. Can his moral authority challenge the continent's rising military spending?
How did a university that once rejected a Pope come to embrace his successor 18 years later?
How will the Pope's new encyclical define morality for a world increasingly run by artificial intelligence?
$681 Billion Arms Race, AI Ethics, and the Vatican’s Stand: Pope Leo XIV Confronts the Global Militarization Surge (2025–2026)
Overview
In 2025, global military spending reached record highs, especially in Asia and Oceania, where expenditures surged by 8.5% to $681 billion, driven largely by China’s continued buildup. This escalation fueled regional tensions and prompted neighboring countries to increase their own defense budgets. Amid this arms race, Pope Leo XIV strongly denounced the growing militarization and the use of artificial intelligence in warfare, warning of its inhumane consequences. He called for a shift from fear and armament to peace, dialogue, and responsible technology governance, urging world leaders to prioritize human dignity, youth protection, and the redirection of resources toward health and development.