Lubna Hanna Ammari

When the Vatican announced the theme for the 2027 World Day of Peace, it chose words that are both provocative and deeply relevant to the world we are living in: “Disarming Technology, Serving Peace. Politics as Preventive Responsibility.” The theme, announced by Pope Leo XIV for the 60th World Day of Peace on January 1, 2027, places technology and particularly artificial intelligence at the center of the global debate on peace, human dignity and responsibility.

The choice of the word “disarming” is particularly significant. The Pope is not calling for humanity to reject technology or abandon scientific progress. Rather, he is challenging governments, institutions, technology developers and societies to reconsider how technological power is designed, governed and used. In a world where artificial intelligence is increasingly influencing decisions that affect our lives, the fundamental question is no longer simply what technology can do, but what it should be allowed to do.

Artificial intelligence has already become an important part of education, healthcare, research, business and public services. It can help students learn in more personalised ways, assist researchers in analyzing complex information and support professionals in making faster and more informed decisions. Yet the same technologies can also be used to manipulate information, undermine privacy, intensify social divisions and, most seriously, influence military decisions and the conduct of war.

This is where the Pope’s message becomes particularly urgent. According to the Vatican’s announcement, Pope Leo XIV warns against entrusting military decisions to artificial intelligence and recalls a central principle from his encyclical Magnifica Humanitas: “no algorithm can make war morally acceptable.” He is calling on the international community to develop shared agreements that protect human responsibility and humanitarian principles whenever human life and peaceful coexistence are at stake.

The message also reflects a growing international concern about the relationship between artificial intelligence, autonomous weapons and nuclear security. In July 2026, more than 200 Nobel laureates, former heads of state, university representatives and experts gathered at the Borgo Laudato Si’ in Italy to discuss artificial intelligence and nuclear war. Their discussions focused on technology in the service of humanity, the moral challenges of AI and war, and the need for responsible governance of emerging technologies.

For this reason, “disarming technology” should be understood as an ethical and political concept rather than a rejection of innovation. It means ensuring that technological development remains anchored in human dignity, accountability and the common good. It means keeping meaningful human responsibility at the center of decisions that can have irreversible consequences.

This message has particular relevance for education. Universities are not only places where students learn how to use new technologies; they are also institutions responsible for preparing future leaders, professionals and citizens to make wise decisions about technology. As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly integrated into education and research, universities must go beyond teaching students how to use AI tools. They must also teach them how to question AI-generated information, recognize bias, protect privacy, evaluate consequences and understand the ethical limits of technological power.

The responsibility, however, does not belong to universities alone. Governments must establish effective regulatory frameworks, technology companies must take responsibility for the systems they develop, and international organizations must work towards common principles that prevent technological competition from becoming another source of conflict. The Vatican’s call for shared international agreements is therefore significant because technologies capable of crossing borders require forms of governance that can also cross borders.

For Jordan and the wider Arab region, this debate offers an important opportunity. Countries across the region are investing heavily in digital transformation and artificial intelligence as part of their efforts to build knowledge-based economies. The challenge is to ensure that this transformation is not measured only by the number of technologies adopted, but also by the extent to which those technologies improve human wellbeing, strengthen education, support sustainable development and contribute to peace.

Ultimately, Pope Leo XIV’s message asks humanity to pause at a critical moment in technological history. We are developing systems capable of processing enormous amounts of information, making increasingly complex predictions and influencing decisions once made exclusively by human beings. But technological intelligence does not automatically create moral wisdom.

The future of artificial intelligence will therefore depend not only on how intelligent our machines become, but on how responsible we remain as human beings. “Disarming technology” is, at its heart, a call to put human dignity before technological power and peace before technological competition.

The 2027 World Day of Peace thus presents a timely question for governments, universities, businesses and citizens alike: Can humanity become wise enough to govern the technologies powerful enough to transform its future? The answer may determine whether artificial intelligence becomes a tool that deepens division and conflict, or one that helps build a safer, more peaceful and more humane world.


The writer is a specialist in educational technology