In Lucerne, Switzerland, religious leaders and researchers conducted a two-month experiment featuring an AI-generated ‘Jesus’ avatar. This digital figure engaged visitors in discussions on faith, morality, and contemporary issues, responding to approximately 900 conversations in multiple languages. The initiative, based on OpenAI’s GPT-4, prompted participants to reflect on the relationship between artificial intelligence and spirituality, eliciting both positive and critical reactions. This endeavor highlights the growing public interest in the potential benefits and challenges of integrating AI into religious contexts.
Work of the Devil’?
“What was really interesting (was) to see that the people really talked with him in a serious way. They didn’t come to make jokes,” said chapel theologian Marco Schmid, who spearheaded the project. Most visitors were aged 40 to 70, and more Catholics respondents found the experience stimulating than did Protestants, the report showed.
Schmid was quick to point out that the “AI Jesus” – billed as a “Jesus-like” persona – was an artistic experiment to get people thinking about the intersection between the digital and the divine, not substitute for human interaction or sacramental confessions with a priest, nor was it intended to save pastoral resources.
“For the people it was clear that it was a computer … It was clear it was not a confession,” Schmid said. “He wasn’t programmed to give absolutions or prayers. At the end, it was more summary of the conversation.”
The Catholic Church from the Vatican on down has been wrestling with the challenges –- and possible opportunities -– presented by the explosion in public interest in AI since generative artificial intelligence captured the world’s attention two years ago when OpenAI’s ChatGPT made its debut.
The Vatican has appointed a friar from a medieval Franciscan order as its top expert on AI, and a Lutheran church in Bavaria served up sermons delivered by a chatbot last year. Pope Francis, in his annual peace message for this year, pushed for an international treaty to ensure the ethical use of AI technology.
