The international meeting “Pope Leo XIV in Latin America” was held on 29 October at the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina. During the event, the Prefect, Sister Alessandra Smerilli, F.M.A., delivered a keynote lecture entitled “Integral human development in the age of artificial intelligence”.
The event was opened by the University’s Grand Chancellor, Archbishop Jorge Ignacio García Cuerva of Buenos Aires. Among those in attendance were His Eminence Cardinal Fernando Chomalí, Archbishop of Santiago de Chile; Bishop Lizardo Estrada, OSA, Coadjutor Bishop of Cusco (Peru) and Secretary General of CELAM; as well as numerous representatives from academia, the business community, the field of interreligious dialogue and various institutions.
In her address, Sister Alessandra Smerilli emphasised that human development does not mean adding new elements, but rather loosening a knot in a tangled skein, helping what is already there to find the opportunity to grow. “Development,” she observed, “actually means undoing, that is, untying a knot”.
This task requires moving slowly, without pulling, while paying attention to the fabric as a whole and its weave; above all, it requires patience. As she explained, development cannot be imposed from the outside: people themselves possess the capacity for their own development. The task, therefore, is to accompany them so that, with the contribution of all the stakeholders involved, the knot can be untied, creating a strong fabric woven together with other threads.
The event concluded with remarks by the University’s Rector, Dr Miguel Ángel Schiavone, and the President of the Argentine Episcopal Conference, Archbishop Marcelo Colombo of Mendoza.