Can AI help your faith?

In the current technology revolution, there is an increase in tech tools that are either aiding or replacing what humans would traditionally do. Artificial intelligence (AI) is the simulation of human intelligence processes by machines, especially computer systems, and is one of the latest tech tools to be released to the general public.

Last year, it was reported that a Catholic chapel in Switzerland used an AI version of Jesus to take on questions of morality behind a confessional booth as part of a two-month experiment. It used a visual avatar of Jesus on a computer screen. This begs the question of whether AI has a place to play in helping to grow our faith as believers.

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Biblia.chat is a mobile AI chat bot, similar to Chatgpt that I have been using over the past year. I have been surprised at how handy it has been. Functionally, it acts similar to Google in that it answers questions about the Bible and Christianity at large. It can provide the cultural context of Biblical times and summarises different views from Christians about certain topics, depending on the question you ask it. This has been helpful for me as previously, I would use Google to look up certain scriptures or understand the context of scriptures at certain times.

 Using an app like Biblia.chat which specialises specifically in Bible questions, has been a quicker way to get answers to my questions as it answers in digestible language

While I found the search engine helpful, it would often come up with various results which could sometimes cause confusion as to what source to trust. Using an app like Biblia.chat which specialises specifically in Bible questions, has been a quicker way to get answers to my questions as it answers in digestible language. It also omits complex jargon that often comes up in more traditional Bible commentaries and can be overwhelming to the average Bible reader.

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Whilst my experience with AI in this format has been helpful, it’s not lost upon me that unregulated use of AI could be problematic. For example, I think that the AI Jesus in Switzerland trial could present issues. The visual proposal of Jesus behind a booth could create an illusion or temptation to use it as a replacement for people speaking directly to God in prayer or getting to know God by reading the Bible for themselves. AI should not be the main crux we cling to to grow in our faith. It should merely be used as a supplementary tool alongside the main meal of Bible study and prayer to develop our intimate relationship with God.

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The psalms speak of the word being hidden in our hearts so that we may not sin against God 

The psalms speak of the word being hidden in our hearts so that we may not sin against God (Psalms 119:11). In John 10:27, Jesus says “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” In order for us to digest God’s word and discern his voice, we need to read the Bible for ourselves, flick through the pages to know where the canonised books are exactly located so that when trials come, the Holy Spirit will bring back to our memory what Jesus has said (John 14:26). We won’t always be in situations where we can easily reach for an AI tool.

As a writer who wants to honour God when writing about faith, the Holy Spirit has reminded me of scriptures I’ve read over the years. Sometimes it’s scriptures I haven’t read in a while and so I’ve been surprised they have sprung to mind. This has helped me when encouraging others and through my work, too. It’s a reminder that the Holy Spirit is ever with us so as we commune with God, he will direct us to all truth (John 16:13).