Pope Leo XIV has received an unusually large green glass orb, prompting instant comparisons with Final Fantasy Materia. The gift was presented as a symbol of humanity’s place in an increasingly automated world.
A post by Elle (@elleisanisland.bsky.social), published on 18 September 2026, highlighted the Pope’s gift and described it as a “massive green orb”.
A real-world orb with strong Materia energy
For players familiar with Final Fantasy VII, the object looks remarkably like Magic Materia. In the game, equipping Magic Materia allows a character to use spells, although the specific spell represented by this real-world orb is impossible to identify.
Its green colour could also suggest Wind Materia to fans, raising the amusing possibility of Pope Leo casting Aero, Aerora or Aeroga. In practical terms, however, the item is a hand-blown Murano glass sphere rather than a functional game prop.
The orb was delivered by Saint Peter for Humanity, a Vatican-affiliated non-profit organisation. The group says its purpose is to preserve, promote and share humanity’s cultural, spiritual and material heritage for the common good.
Why the gift focuses on humanity and AI
Saint Peter for Humanity describes the sphere as a symbolic artwork about retaining human values during the age of artificial intelligence. The timing connects with Pope Leo’s recent discussion of AI in the encyclical Magnifica Humanitas.
In that text, Pope Leo called for AI to be “disarmed” so that attention remains centred on human beings rather than machines. He clarified that this does not mean rejecting technology, but preventing it from dominating humanity.
Olivier François, identified as the head of Saint Peter for Humanity as well as the CEO of Fiat and chief marketing officer of Stellantis, explained the symbolism in a video shared with Fox News.
The sphere is a Murano sphere, so it’s blown by hand, and the breathing of humans, the symbolism of the sphere is that it’s a perfect shape, but executed in a very imperfect way, which is the human way, because humans breathe, robots don’t breathe, and this ability to breathe helps us create beautiful things, which are not always perfect but so much more beautiful.
A curious gift with a colourful guest list
The organisation’s leadership has also attracted attention. Its board includes Kimbal Musk, the brother of Elon Musk, and television producer Mark Burnett, creator of The Apprentice and the United States special envoy to the United Kingdom at the time described in the report.
That combination of Vatican symbolism, Silicon Valley connections and automotive leadership makes the orb an unusually modern diplomatic-style gift. Whether it represents Magic Materia, Wind Materia or simply a carefully designed piece of glass, its message is clear: human creativity should not be treated as interchangeable with machine output.
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