News

Pope Francis: An ethical AI respects human dignity

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Pope Francis and the Minerva Dialogues
Pope Francis meets with participants of the Minerva Dialogues — a meeting of scientists, engineers, business leaders, lawyers, philosophers, Catholic theologians, ethicists, and members of the Roman Curia to discuss digital technologies — at the Vatican on March 27, 2023. | Credit: Vatican Media

Pope Francis said emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning could be beneficial to society as long as they respect human dignity.

“The fundamental value that we must recognize and promote is that of the dignity of the human person,” the pope said during a March 27 audience at the Vatican with participants in the Minerva Dialogues.

Organized by the Dicastery for Culture and Education, the Minerva Dialogues is a meeting of scientists, engineers, business leaders, lawyers, philosophers, Catholic theologians, ethicists, and members of the Roman Curia to discuss digital technologies.

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Artificial Intelligence generates fake image of Pope

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fooled everyone


Use of artificial intelligence to generate photo realistic images of people has come under criticism. Recently, an image of the Pope in a puffer jacket went viral on social media. A fake, AI-generated image of Pope Francis stepping out in a stylish white puffer jacket and bejewelled crucifix racked up millions of views over the weekend – with many mistaking it for a real image.

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Restoring India’s holiest river

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Ganges at Varanasi

A long snout lined with sharp teeth slides above the water, followed by a broad back with a triangular fin. Then it is gone.

Spotting Ganga river dolphins in Northern India is tough. The muddy water hides them well and they are shy around boats. But their rarity is mostly down to the massive degradation of their home.

Now, sightings of the endangered dolphins and other wildlife are rebounding, conservationists say, thanks to a concerted effort to restore India’s most sacred river, which is an economic lifeline for more than 500 million people and supports countless species.

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Religions for Peace Announces Women of Excellence in Multi-Religious Action Award

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Women of Excellence in Multi-Religious Action Award

Religions for Peace, the world’s most representative multi-faith organisation, is pleased to announce the inaugural Women of Excellence in Multi-Religious Action Award! Women of faith are the backbone of all faith communities and religious institutions but are rarely recognised for their efforts. Religions for Peace understands the importance of recognising and amplifying the work of women of faith and women-led initiatives, as they are often overlooked in the fields of peacebuilding and interfaith cooperation. Through this award, Religions for Peace aims to highlight and bring attention to the crucial role that women of faith play in creating lasting change in their communities and beyond.

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Understanding reporting barriers and support needs of people experiencing racism

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Understanding reporting barriers and support needs of people experiencing racism
Victoria University is conducting an anti-racism project called Understanding reporting barriers and support needs of people experiencing racism, in collaboration with Ethnic Communities’ Council of Victoria (ECCV) and the Islamic Council of Victoria (ICV). The project is funded by the Victorian Health Promotion Foundation (VicHealth).

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Saying Yes to the Voice will herald a better future for us all

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Sister Patty FawknerTruth-telling is essential. We cannot fall into the racist trap of dismissing authenticated stories of the past as a ‘black armband’ view of history, that pejorative label cynically employed by former prime minister John Howard, writes Sister Patty Fawkner, Congregational Leader of the Sisters of the Good Samaritan.

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Pope to Buddhists: Religions play crucial role in fostering fraternity

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Pope Francis with Taiwanese Buddhist Monks

Pope meeting the United Association of Humanistic Buddhism (Taiwan) (VATICAN MEDIA Divisione Foto)


Pope Francis received a delegation of the United Association of Humanistic Buddhism of Taiwan and highlights the crucial role of religions in fostering fraternity by promoting a culture of encounter.

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Victoria: Prayer and Meditation Service For Peace

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Prayer and Meditation Service For PeaceThe Victorian Multicultural Commission (VMC), Multifaith Advisory Group (MAG) and leaders of Melbourne’s Sikh and Hindu communities have organised a meditation and prayer service at Federation Square from 6-7pm on Monday, 20 March. The service, which will be held in the name of peace, unity and social cohesion, is a direct response to recent conversations between the VMC, MAG and faith leaders following incidents of vandalism at places of worship.

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People of faith say ‘no’ to fossil fuels in global Week of Action

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Divestment Week of Action initiated by the global Catholic Laudato Si’ Movement

During a world-wide Divestment Week of Action initiated by the global Catholic Laudato Si’ Movement, Australian people of faith and their organisations were encouraged to consider divesting from fossil fuels as part of their broader responsibility to care for the earth.

A multi-faith prayer service was held at St Patrick’s Catholic Cathedral, Parramatta on Thursday 9 March, as part of the Week of Action, organised by the Australian Religious Response to Climate Change (ARRCC).

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Harmony Week 2023

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Harmony Week 2023Harmony Week is the celebration that recognises our diversity and brings together Australians from all different backgrounds. It’s about inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone. Several resources are available, and there are a number of interfaith events occurring during Harmony Week.

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Modern Slavery: Breaking the Silence

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Modern Slavery: Breaking the SilenceBreaking the Silence is a proposal for whistleblower protections to enable migrant workers to address exploitation. Religions for Peace Australia, in support of the Australian Catholic Anti-slavery Network adds its voice to calls to better protect people on temporary visas who experience exploitation in Australia. These protections would increase the opportunity for international students and the many thousands of temporary workers in Catholic operations and supply chains to seek help without fear of losing their visa.

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An Indigenous Voice to Parliament: Considering a constitutional bridge by Frank Brennan, SJ

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An Indigenous Voice to Parliament: Considering a constitutional bridge

Australians will soon be asked to vote in a referendum asking ‘Do you support an alteration to the Constitution that establishes an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice?’

Frank Brennan has been an advocate for Indigenous rights for 40 years. Here he shows the difficult path travelled by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders and their supporters to get to this question.

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UN 2023 Water Conference

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UN 2023 Water Conference

From 22-24 March 2023, United Nations Member States, civil society, and other stakeholders will gather in New York for the UN 2023 Water Conference, to unite the world for water. The primary goal of the Conference is to raise awareness of the global water crisis and commit to joint action to achieve the internationally agreed water-related goals and targets, such as Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG6: Clean Water and Sanitation) of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

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Queensland to ban Nazi swastika tattoos as part of crackdown on hate symbols

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Queensland to ban Nazi swastika tattoos

The Queensland government has vowed to make it illegal to display Nazi swastika tattoos as part of its ban on hate symbols that it says will be among the strongest in the country.

Queensland will join New South Wales, which has already implemented a ban on displaying the symbol, in applying the restriction to tattoos. Western Australia and Tasmania are also moving to include tattoos in their proposed bans.

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A National Human Rights Act for Australia

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A National Human Rights Act for Australia

Australia is the only liberal democracy that does not have a bill or charter of rights at the national level, and people’s human rights are not very well protected in Australian law. The starting point for a national Human Rights Act is to recognise that people’s human rights matter, all of the time, and should be protected.

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