One of Pope Francis’ last prayer intentions urged people to ‘look less at screens’

Weeks ahead of his death, Pope Francis dedicated this month’s prayer intention to new technologies and the hope that it can serve “every person, especially the weakest.” 

“How I would like for us to look less at screens and look each other in the eyes more,” Pope Francis said in a prerecorded video released April 1. “Something’s wrong if we spend more time on our cellphones than with people. The screen makes us forget that there are real people behind it who breathe, laugh, and cry.”

Pope Francis died at 88 Monday morning, the Vatican announced in a statement on X, just after his appearance in St. Peter’s Square on Easter Sunday. Pope Francis, in his 12-year papacy, often stood up for the marginalized, including migrants. And the April 1 tech-focused prayer intention was no different.

“It’s true, technology is the fruit of the intelligence God gave us,” he continued. “But we need to use it well. It can’t benefit only a few while excluding others. So, what should we do? We should use technology to unite, not to divide. To help the poor. To improve the lives of the sick and persons with different abilities.”

The pope has voiced his concerns over technology before. Last year, he warned that artificial intelligence could lock the world order in a “technocratic paradigm.” In 2023, he spoke to participants at a workshop about how tech should be considered with its moral implications.

“Use technology to care for our common home,” Pope Francis said during his April 1 intention. “To connect as brothers and sisters. It’s when we look at each other in the eyes that we discover what really matters: that we are brothers, sisters, children of the same Father. Let us pray that the use of new technologies will not replace human relationships, will respect the dignity of the person, and will help us face the crises of our times.”

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