In the story of Icarus, the Greek gods punish those who dare to come too close to their domain. Naturally, there’s resentment towards such divinities. We’d be better off without them and explore human potential to its fullest.

Don’t fly too high; don’t fly too low; try to stay safely in between. That is the moral of this story. When I was young, and this was first explained to me, I did not like it. I took it as a call to live a mediocre life and a warning not to let the enthusiasm of youth carry me away. Why should not pushing the boundaries, especially in youth, be a good thing?

In a way, humanity always remains transfixed by the power of youth. Youth is when all seems possible. We might look at humanity today in similar terms. Our technological powers keep increasing, and maybe one day we will be masters of our own fate and freed from the limits that nature imposes on us.

This is the promise of transhumanism, and Pope Leo addresses its fundamental flaw in his encyclical on AI. At first, you might think, why not? Why should we not keep pushing the boundaries of what we can do to improve our bodies with the help of emerging technologies?

But there is an insight into human nature that Pope Leo, together with all Christians, remembers. It is one of the odder aspects of the Christian faith. It is the admonition to be like children, a reminder to be trusting.

When I watch the children play in the schoolyard across the street from our friary, I am always cheered by their joyful games. It is easy to enjoy life when surrounded by happy children at play. Their energy carries you along and makes it easier to focus on what is important: to enjoy the company of others, to share one’s life with others, and to find happiness in this way.

But a child’s life can also be full of hardship, and even when it is not, they must grow up and carry responsibilities, and these can be heavy. Nothing is accomplished by romanticizing childhood as a carefree period of life. Childhood is about preparation for what’s to come. And this is what children generally understand, as I have yet to meet a child who does not want to grow up.

Neither is Jesus being naïve when he tells us to be like children. He is telling us to be reasonable, to have faith that God is with us, not against us, and to trust that our natural humanity is a good thing, not something that holds us back. It is about being joyful despite the circumstances. We have a heart that makes this possible. Through our limitations, the heart reveals the grandeur of our nature.

Technology is neither perdition nor salvation. It is part of our culture and an accomplishment of the human spirit. But it is never about autonomy from nature but always about living in accordance with our nature. It is about living with a heart that seeks not autonomy but community. If we understand that this is living according to the grandeur of the human person, then we can fly as high as we want.