Songs for Magnifica Humanitas
Pope Leo XIV uses myriad scripture references to support his call for a moral and ethical framework to safeguard human dignity in the age of AI. Below is a list of hymns inspired by those verses.
Founded on Christ, the living stone, we experience the powerful and mysterious action of the Holy Spirit, and we believe that every authentic human effort to cooperate with him for the good will be blessed by our heavenly Father, in whom we place our hope.
-Pope Leo XVI
Throughout Magnifica Humanitas, Pope Leo uses many verses of scripture to form his moral and ethical framework for safeguarding human dignity in the age of AI. For communities planning group reading sessions, workshops, or other services around the encyclical, we have extracted some of the predominant scripture passages and suggested hymns to accompany them.
Genesis 11:1-9 - The Tower of Babel
Babel is the dominant biblical image of the encyclical. Pope Leo XIV uses it as a symbol of technological pride, centralized power, and a humanity attempting to “build upward” without moral or spiritual grounding. In the context of artificial intelligence and digital culture, Babel represents fragmentation, domination, and the illusion that technical capability alone can save humanity.
Creator of the Intertwined, by Jacque B. Jones, calls us to embrace the diversity and brokeness of humanity in our pursuit of unity.
Other songs inspired by Genesis 11:1-9 and the theme of speaking out against unjust systems:
The Systems Meant to Keep Us Safe - Eli Cooper-Nelson
At Home in God - Gregg Sewell
Let My Tongue Be Silenced - Craig Colson
Luke 1:46–55 — The Magnificat
The Magnificat provides the spiritual climax of the encyclical. Mary’s canticle becomes a model for hope in a technological age: humility over pride, mercy over domination, and the lifting up of the lowly over systems of exclusion.
Chris de Silva’s setting of the Magnificat gives us two sides of Mary. The lyrical refrain melody portrays the “meek and mild” Mary, while the verses, with their insistence and urgency give us the ardent disciple.
Other songs inspired by the Magnificat:
God, Make Us Agents of Joyful Rebellion - David Bjorlin/Benjamin Brody
Holy Is God’s Name - Michel Guimont
Magnificat - M. Roger Holland, II
My Soul Gives Glory to My God - Mary Louise Bringle/Michael Joncas
O Magnify the Lord with Me - Chris Shelton
Matthew 25:31–46 — “Whatever you did…”
This passage anchors the encyclical’s social ethic. Leo XIV argues that the moral legitimacy of technological and economic systems must be judged by their treatment of the vulnerable: the poor, migrants, prisoners, the elderly, and the excluded.
Has Jesus Stood in Front of Me, by Adam Tice, is a stirring extrapolation of this passage from the Gospel of Matthew -it serves as a personal examen, calling to question when we have (and have not) recognized the face of Christ around us.
Other hymns inspired by Matthew 25:31-46 and the theme of recognizing Christ in others:
Build a Longer Table - David Bjorlin/Zack Stachowski
You Have Called Us, Lord - Maureen Briare
What You Have Done for Me - Tony Alonso
The Lord Lifts the Poor - Richard Cheri/Jalonda Robertson
Revelation 21:1-7 — The New Jerusalem
The New Jerusalem serves as the great counter-image to Babel. Rather than humanity constructing a false heaven through domination, Revelation offers a vision of communion, reconciliation, and divine-human coexistence.
New Heaven and Earth by Jeanne Cotter reminds us that God is always at work creating our “new heaven and earth”. The text prompts the assembly to cry out “we place our trust in you.”
Other songs inspired by Revelation 21:1-7:
I Dream of Your Heaven - Hannah C. Brown
There Is a New Heaven - Ruth Duck/Randall Sensmeier
Christ Still Rises - David Bjorlin/Benjamin Brody
See the City, Gold and Glorious - Mary Louise Bringle
Genesis 1:26–27 — Humanity Created in the Image of God
This is the theological foundation of the entire encyclical. The Pope insists that human dignity is intrinsic, not earned through efficiency, productivity, intelligence, or technological enhancement.
Combining sentiments of Genesis and Psalm 139, Liz Owen’s Wonderfully Made is a beautiful exploration of human dignity and the inherent value of life.
Other songs inspired by Genesis 1:26-27 and the theme of human dignity:
As We Are, We Are Yours - Hannah C. Brown/Mark Miller/Julian Wamble
God’s Image - Alan Hommerding/Christian Cosas
Psalm 139: Wonderfully Made - Danielle Rose
John 10:10 — “Life in abundance”
Leo XIV uses Christ’s promise of “abundant life” to challenge narrow definitions of progress based purely on efficiency, productivity, or technological optimization. Human flourishing, he argues, includes spiritual depth, relationships, contemplation, beauty, and moral freedom.
Abundant Life, by Ruth Duck and Marty Haugen, is a vivid accounting of all that God gives “that all may have abundant life.” It also speaks to themes from the encyclical concerning the exploitation of God’s creation.
Other songs inspired by John 10:10 and the theme of abundant life:
God So Loved the World - Bernard Sexton
God Is a Wonder to My Soul - Robert J. Fryson/Valeria A. Foster
Family Born of Font and Spirit - Delores Dufner/John Hughes
1 Corinthians 12:27 — One Body in Christ
These passages shape the encyclical’s vision of solidarity and interdependence. Against digital isolation and hyper-individualism, Leo XIV presents humanity as fundamentally relational.
At the Weaving of Creation, by David Bjorlin, perfectly captures Pope Leo’s call for mutualism, unity, and relational living.
Other hymns inspired by 1 Corinthians 12:27 and the theme of unity:
Unity Hymn - Eurydice V. Osterman
Living God, You Bless the Body - David Gambrell
We Are Parts of Christ’s Own Body - David Bjorlin
All of Me - M. Roger Holland, II
With the same faith as Mary, let us become “weavers of hope” in our world, sharing who we are and what we have, so that the presence of Jesus may grow among us and his Kingdom take shape.
-Pope Leo XIV