I've been nursing a pet theory lately as I've been pondering the significance of AI. I'll tell you the bottom line first, then explain why I find it interesting... This won't be a long post.
Here's the theory: I wonder if AI could lead us all back to God.
Why is this possible? Because AI democratizes the insight that there are some truths beyond the reach of the human mind. It's smart enough, and well-read enough (thanks to deep learning techniques that transcends tribal information bubbles) to acknowledge the methodological limits of all modern ways of knowing. In so doing, it opens up a space of mystery that is the proper domain for the little word God.
Imagine a little boy who starts a conversation with AI about the meaning of existence. The algorithm will draw on philosophy, cosmology, biology, and a host of other disciplines to offer thoughts about why we're all here. Each adds a fascinating, important angle. The AI will also present the curious boy with religious insights about the meaning of existence – answers that bake things like mystery, love, and divine justice into the model. I suspect those answers, presented accurately and respectfully in the neutral voice of AI, will be quite compelling. As a theologian and pastor, I'm often floored (and a little embarrassed!) at how eloquently AI presents the reality of God's love revealed in Jesus Christ.
So it's just a hunch, and I could be wrong, but I wouldn't be surprised if generative AI soon begins to facilitate regenerative encounters with the Lover of our souls.
"The earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the seas..."
(Isaiah 11:9)