By Radio Veritas Asia
MACAU — Reminding Catholic communicators that true evangelization requires authentic human presence rather than digital simulation, a leading Asian bishop called for an ethical and person-centered approach to artificial intelligence across the continent.
Bishop Marcelino Antonio “Junie” Maralit Jr. of the Diocese of San Pablo, Philippines, who serves as Chairman of the FABC Office of Social Communication (FABC-OSC), delivered his address, “The Face Behind the Screen,” on October 29. His presentation took place in the conference hall of St. Jose Villa in Macau during the annual FABC-OSC Assembly.
The October 27–31 regional assembly brings together Asian bishops, priests, religious, and lay media leaders under the theme, “Magnifica Humanitas and the Synodal Ways of Evangelization in Asia: Communicating Christ in the Age of Artificial Intelligence.” The gathering coincides with historic preparations for the 450th anniversary of the Diocese of Macau, the oldest diocese in the Far East and an enduring bridge for Gospel proclamation in Asia.
Laying out a comprehensive pastoral vision, Bishop Junie highlighted the sheer scale of Asia’s digital reality. While two-thirds of the world’s six billion internet users live in Asia, the continent also hosts the world’s largest offline populations, creating a stark digital divide. With Catholics comprising just 11 percent of Asia’s population, he noted that millions will first encounter the Church on a digital screen rather than inside a physical building.
“In Asia, the digital world is no longer a side room of our mission; it is the main square, the Areopagus of our time,” Bishop Junie said, noting that Asia is leading global AI adoption.
However, the prelate warned against severe digital “wounds” affecting Asian societies, including human trafficking in cyber-scam compounds, online child exploitation, state surveillance, deepfakes, and the loss of interior prayer life. He also cautioned clergy against “pastoral shortcuts,” explicitly urging ministers never to pass off AI-generated homilies as their own or hand over spiritual care to algorithms.
“The fundamental challenge of AI is not technological, but anthropological,” Bishop Junie emphasized, quoting Pope Leo XIV. “God did not save us by sending information. He sent a Person with a face, a voice, and hands that touched the sick and broke bread.”
Outlining pastoral guidelines for Asian bishops’ conferences, the organizer urged leaders to prioritize transparency, data privacy, and the formation of Asian seminarians, who represent nearly 29 percent of the world’s total. He also called for digital solidarity with marginalized data workers and interreligious partnerships to combat digital abuse.
“Behind every screen in Asia, there is a face,” Bishop Maralit concluded. “Machines can carry words across Asia faster than ever, but only persons can carry presence, and only a community can offer the Bread of Life.”
