By David Thomas ‘29

The rise of generative AI, since the first public release of ChatGPT almost three full years ago, has challenged us to consider how to adapt to this new technology in almost every facet of our lives. We’ve effectively been charged, whether we like it or not, with answering the question, “What does it mean to live in a world with generative AI?”. As I’ve been contemplating this question, I’ve been struck by a secondary, but arguably still important question: “What does it mean to be a Christian in a world with generative AI?”. Our faith, as a lens through which we view the world, also impacts how we look at AI, and I think viewing AI from a Christian perspective reveals a number of challenges. When used carefully, generative AI can be a powerful tool, but for Christians, there are a number of ethical and practical considerations in its use. 

One of the two greatest commands that Jesus gives is to “Love your neighbor as yourself” (NIV, Matt. 22:39), but what does this mean when our neighbor is an AI chatbot? In an article on Christianity Today, Kate Lucky (2023) explores this idea in two different ways: firstly, how the habits we make when conversing with AIs bleed over into our interactions with humans, and secondly how interacting with AIs lets us avoid interacting with the arguably more difficult humans. I think that both of these present problems, but potentially the second is more concerning to me. While it is true that how you treat an AI will build a habit that will likely continue in human relationships, the ability to avoid messy human interactions in favor of computers is, in my opinion, much more insidious. One significant issue that many have noticed with AI is their tendency towards sycophancy: simply agreeing with whoever prompts them, causing completely frictionless interactions which contrast heavily with interactions between humans (Lotz 2025). Humans, by definition, are messy and imperfect beings, and yet we have been created to be in relationship with each other. While oftentimes having these relationships can be the source of a lot of stress and hardship, that doesn’t mean that they aren’t worth having and working for. While it sounds nice some of the time, outsourcing our relationships to robots isn’t loving our neighbors, it’s avoiding them. 

This is a common theme with generative AI: it provides opportunities to make our lives easier, but at the cost of losing some facet of our humanity. Jesus never said that life would be easy. In fact, in John 16:33, he even tells us that “In this world you will have trouble”. Another example of this is with AI art generators, which offer us the ability to efficiently and with very little work create what would otherwise take an artist significant time and effort to create. Yes, this does make art “easier”, but in the meantime it takes away from the process of actually creating, and I believe that creating is one of the most important facets of our experience as humans. The first words in the Bible read, “In the beginning, God created…” (Genesis 1:1). If we are created in the image of a God who is so defined by his creativity, we too are called to be creators in our own right, and if by having a generative AI system do the process of the creation we bypass this calling, I believe we lose something integral to our experience as humans. 

Generative AI can also be used as a tool in the creative process for religious leaders, from helping with the menial tasks of checking spelling and grammar efficiently to generating ideas for sermons and presentations. While automating these tasks definitely improves efficiency and how much content one can create, it can have hidden dangers. In an article on the Church Anew Blog, Ryan Panzer (2025) writes, “The sense of accomplishment from a clever argument or a witty expression isn’t as evident since I started using OpenAI”. While there are benefits to optimizing one’s output, loss of satisfaction and enjoyment in the process is arguably more important. Especially for people in jobs in ministry or church leadership roles, it’s important to take pride in and value the work that we do. 

Another concern with using AI is the significant environmental impact. Data centers, the physical places where the computers needed to train and run AIs are housed, use huge amounts of electricity: according to the 2024 United States Data Center Energy Usage Report (Shehabi et al.), up to 12% of the nation’s electricity usage could be from data centers by 2028. The water usage of these data centers is also significant, as a large data center can use up to 5 million gallons per day (for reference, that’s around the same as a small city of 10,000-50,000 people) (Osaka 2025). As the number of data centers continue to increase as demand for AI computing power also increases, these demands will get even more drastic and cause even more environmental problems. In a world that is already plagued by environmental crises, the advent of AI technology and its environmental impact is concerning. As Christians, we are called to be good stewards of our environment and of the planet, and continuing to support the growth of this technology (especially without legal regulation, as it largely is at this point) is antithetical to this calling. 

AI is powerful. It’s useful, and it’s becoming more common by the day. While some believe that the “AI bubble” is soon to burst, in the here and now it is a reality that we have to live with. As Christians, we have to ask how we can continue to live out our callings (such as loving our neighbors, loving God, and caring for the planet) in this new world that is being formed around us. In a world where we increasingly outsource our thoughts to machines, it is now more important than ever that in every topic, not just considering the implications of AI, we use the abilities of critical thinking and interpretation that God has given us to do our best to fulfill these callings. 

Discussion Question: 

1. How has technology radically changed our ways of life in the past? How is AI similar or different to these past advancements? 
2. How could AI be useful in exploring vocation? How could it be a hindrance? 
3. AI sometimes allows us to automate tasks rather than doing the thinking ourselves. Can you think of any other things in your life that you use to avoid thinking? How could you approach these circumstances with more intentionality? 

References

Lotz, A. (2025, July 7). AI sycophancy: The downside of a digital yes-man. Axios. https://www.axios.com/2025/07/07/ai-sycophancy-chatbots-mental-health

Lucky, K. (2023, September 11). AI Will Shape Your Soul – Christianity Today. Christianity Today. https://www.christianitytoday.com/2023/09/artificial-intelligence-robots-soul-formation/

Osaka, S. (2023, May 4). A new front in the water wars: Your internet use. Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2023/04/25/data-centers-drought-water-use/

Panzer, R. (2025, March 18). Church Anew. Church Anew. https://churchanew.org/blog/posts/ryan-panzer-hidden-cost-of-ai

Shehabi, A., Smith, Sarah, Hubbard, A., Newkirk, A., Lei, N., Abu, M., Holecek, B., Koomey, J., Masanet, E., & Sartor, D. (2024, December 20). 2024 United States Data Center Energy Usage Report. Escholarship.org. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/32d6m0d1