Of New Things
CrowdSource 5.12.2025
Welcome to CrowdSource, your weekly guided tour of the latest intellectual disputes, ideological disagreements and national debates that piqued our interest (or inflamed our passions). This week: a new pope, inequality and AI.
Join us! CrowdSource features the best comments from The Crowd — our cherished readers and subscribers who, with their comments and emails, help make Wisdom of Crowds what it is.
What’s In a Name?
A new pope’s name suggests something about his mission or his mandate; the newly-minted Pope Leo XIV chose his name in honor of Pope Leo XIII.
Leo XIII reigned from 1878 to 1903, and lead the Catholic response to the rise of industrialization and capitalism.
“A Copernican Revolution.” On May 9, Chilean Cardinal Chomalí told a reporter:
[Leo XIV] told me he is very concerned about the cultural shifts we are living through, a Copernican revolution really — artificial intelligence, robotics, human relationships. … He was inspired by Leo XIII, who in the midst of the Industrial Revolution wrote Rerum Novarum, launching an important dialogue between the church and the modern world.
“Another Industrial Revolution.” On May 10, the Pope confirmed Chomalí’s statement:
I chose to take the name Leo XIV … mainly because Pope Leo XIII in his historic encyclical Rerum Novarum addressed the social question in the context of the first great industrial revolution. In our own day, the Church offers to everyone the treasury of her social teaching in response to another industrial revolution and to developments in the field of artificial intelligence that pose new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice and labour.
Pundits are pondering the significance of the Pope’s chosen name:
“Eye-Watering Material Inequalities.” Writes
:
In a 21st century that starkly resembles the 19th — not least in its eye-watering material inequalities and the overweening power of some few tyrannical CEOs — the Church now has a universal pastor who is clearly in love with the Leonine tradition …
“The Meaning of ‘Leo’.” Here’s
:
“Of New Things”
Ever wonder why Catholics tend to have anti-capitalist sentiments, even if they’re conservative about other issues?
One big reason is Pope Leo XIII’s 1891 encyclical (“circular letter”), titled Rerum Novarum or “Of Revolution” (or literally: “of new things”). Even Senator Marco Rubio has cited the text as an influence on his economic views.
Rerum Novarum consists of 64 numbered paragraphs critical of both capitalism and socialism, and devoted to finding a third way between the two — a new order which prioritizes the rights of the working class. Some highlights:
Inequality and Injustice. From paragraph #3: “… a small number of very rich men have been able to lay upon the teeming masses of the laboring poor a yoke little better than that of slavery itself.”
Right to Property. From #13: “[The] right to property, therefore … has been proved to belong naturally to individual persons …” And from #46: “ The law, therefore … favor ownership, and its policy should be to induce as many as possible of the people to become owners.”
A Fair Wage. From #45: “… wages ought not to be insufficient to support a frugal and well-behaved wage-earner. If through necessity or fear of a worse evil the workman accept harder conditions because an employer or contractor will afford him no better, he is made the victim of force and injustice.”
Leo XIV’s ascent has reignited the debate over the correct interpretation of Leo XIII’s social thought.
“Socialism is Evil.”
of the National Review argues that the anti-capitalism of Leo XIII has been exaggerated: “Rerum novarum is very clear that socialism is evil, and markets and private property are essential to human flourishing.”Inequality is Evil. Plough editor
responds: “Those reading [Rerum Novarum] as endorsing capitalism need to explain how to reconcile every rational being having a right to productive property (paragraph 13) with a system premised on the vast majority possessing none (paragraph 3).”#47. Cairns believes the inequality in Leo XIII’s time is comparable to inequality today:
A Copernican Revolution
Leo XIV has a lot to think about with regard to AI and the future of humanity. We invite the pope to attend our forthcoming live event about this very topic.
Our guests for that event,
and Christine Rosen, both have a knack for articulating what’s at stake:From Rosen’s The Extinction of Experience, 2024:
“If we are to reclaim human virtues and save our most deeply rooted human experiences from extinction, we must be willing to place limits on the more extreme transformative projects proposed by our techno-enthusiasts, not as a means of stifling innovation but as a commitment to our shared humanity.”
From Ruiz’s “Technocapital is Eating My Brains,” 2023:
I’m a techno-optimist because I think the only way out is through, and that technology must be made to serve human ends. [But] without a better philosophy of what a human is for, and a higher view of humans than of the technocapital machine, it’s just a vehicle for [Nick] Land’s creatures from beyond the void.
More recent stuff in this vein:
“Will AI Be Alive?” A provocative series of essays by theologian
.“The Case for Alarm.”
in conversation with AI safety activist, .CrowdSource! We’ve done a CrowdSource about the meaning of AGI; about what computers (probably) can’t do; and about the growth of Christianity in Silicon Valley and what that means for AI.
From the Crowd
You’ll get a lot of debate about Michael Jordan from all sides; not on his skills but on the intangibles. If you want the winning attitude combined with skills that changed the game without bending officiating to enhance the play I’d go for Bill Russell. Activist and groundbreaking coach as well. He never issued a quote like “Republicans also buy shoes (sneakers)” nor did he embarrass himself with a childish display of pique inviting a high school rival to his (Jordan’s) hall of fame induction — a truly classless performance from someone who should be beyond that. Greatness is defined in so many ways and changes in perspective often defined by its current period. In the 21st century we fall prey to presentism in defining it, skewing our appreciation of the past. This means we focus on how unlike us events or figures are. We are not excusing wrongs by putting things in perspective.
As far as the tech “bros” they’re admired because they’ve made incredible amounts of money which we believe signifies great intelligence and superior morality. The Puritan ideal exploded and mutated into the 21st century.
Wisdom of Crowds is a platform challenging premises and understanding first principles on politics and culture. Join us!
Fantastic Monday note
My first reaction to the new Leo's description of his namesake is to wonder how much of AI will be the DotCom bust of the 90s... (A much greater portion than anyone blabbing seems to think, imo).
However, even the internet was transformative, so I don't dismiss that things will be different. More importantly we are in a new mess of political, economic and religious change, so a Pope with a steady hand and wide eyes is a boon to us all. Especially if he knocks laissez faire capitalists down a peg or three.
This made me laugh:
"Ever wonder why Catholics tend to have anti-capitalist sentiments, even if they’re conservative about other issues?"
- No, they're following Jesus, it's required.